Post by ---------a on Aug 9, 2008 22:07:57 GMT -1
My report
Cardiff City Vs Southampton
Cardiff started the game quickly, with debutant Ross McCormack surging down the right hand side and crossing dangerously across the six yard box. However the Saints’ Lloyd James cleared well under pressure from Steven Thompson. Saints then replied with a mazy run of their own down the right side, with Jake Thomson making light work of make-shift left back Mark Kennedy and crossing towards the centre of the penalty area; Glenn Loovens was on hand to head clear, but Morgan Schneiderlin pinged the ball back into the box for Michael Svensson, who headed well over.
The next few moments were controversial, as twice the Southampton players in the attacking third closed down the Cardiff backline in menacing fashion, subsequently forcing them into nervy back passes. The first by Loovens was disregarded by the referee - who claimed the ball came off the player’s thigh, leaving the home goalkeeper feeling relieved. But there was nothing he could do about the next one, as Lee Holmes gratefully intercepted on a weak backpass by Johnson and Manchester United loanee Heaton pounced on the ball. Simon Gillett blasted the resulting in-direct free kick into the wall.
A frantic opening to the first half continued when Chris Perry slipped on the wet surface and Joe Ledley appeared to be clean through on goal, however he decided to pick out a pass for Peter Whittingham, rather than shot and the latter saw his shot closed down quickly by Andrew Surman at left back.
Southampton kept up the early pressure, as their quick closing down of players in midfield and in around the final third was paying off, Thomson winning a corner and Holmes floating one in for Svensson, who again headed over. The away side were working well as a team, as they collectively gave Cardiff little time on the ball; the younger players’ greater enthusiasm and desire to get to the ball first, was a cause of concern for Home fans, but although the Saints were applying a great deal of pressure in this first twenty minutes, they were creating few chances and David McGoldrick often found himself chasing on to hopeful balls.
Their inability to turn pressure into chances was to pay, as Cardiff slowly got a foothold on the game and it was indeed the home side that ended the first half in dominant fashion. First, Ledley teed up Thompson for a well struck shot, which was saved smartly by Davis, before Gavin Rae drilled a fierce effort just wide of the left hand post. McPhail passed for Thompson, who approached goal in a dogged manner, but Svensson made his shooting angle tight and the striker saw his shot well saved again.
Kelvin Davis rushed out of his box to tackle Gavin Rae, in a potentially threatening attack, before McNaughton’s cross was headed down by Thompson into the path of Whittingham, who shot wildly over the bar. Davis again made a fine save, this time tipping Joe Ledley’s goal-bound effort wide of the post, but there was little Davis could do about the next attack, as the home side finally made a breakthrough... Gavin Rae saw his shot blocked by a number of eager bodies who threw themselves in the way of the shot, but the ball came loose to THOMPSON who slotted the rebound home. It was a deserved goal for the hosts, who held off early pressure from Southampton and created numerous chances to ultimately breach the away side’s defence.
The Saints were resilient though and found themselves level pegging almost immediately, as half-time approached. Surman showed great strength to rob McNaughton of the ball, before crossing low for MCGOLDRICK to poach from close range and net his first league goal for the club.
Half Time: Cardiff City 1-1 Southampton
The second half was soon to go back to how things were, before Southampton equalised though, as Cardiff pushed for all three points in a gruelling 45 minutes.
Thompson beat the offside trap and laid off nicely for Ledley, who lacked composure when firing over the bar and Cardiff will feel that they should have got a second, when Roger Johnson was left unmarked from a corner and saw powerful header, very well saved by Davis, whilst Johnson was turning away to celebrate and he had a chance soon after from another corner, when he was left unmarked again and headed just inches wide; failing to make Southampton pay for their poor marking.
Substitute and new signing from Wolves, Jay Bothroyd linked up with Johnson from another set piece, but the striker saw his shot well held by Davis. And as the game went into the last twenty minutes, Cardiff attacked freely down the wings, with McPhail constantly threading the ball out wide for McCormack, Bothroyd and Sub Parry to cross, but all three saw their crosses cleared with some desperate defending from a solid defence.
Saints brought on Nathan Dyer and Bradley Wright-Phillips to add some flair and fresh legs to the cause, particularly as most of the team’s youngsters had run themselves into the ground, but they proved to be largely ineffectual. However they could have nicked all three points late on, when Surman whipped in a teasing free kick, which evaded everyone, including the outstretched foot of Svensson at the back post.
Cardiff were to have the last laugh though, as a stoppage time corner ensured a scramble in the box and JOHNSON flicked the ball goal wards... Davis appeared to have made a fantastic reaction save, tipping the ball onto the post, but the ball trickled over the line, as the goalkeeper desperately tried to claw the ball away. Harsh circumstances to win the game so late on, but probably a fair result in the end.
Summary
On the balance of play, a loss seems a fair result for Saints and although we battled hard for most of the game, we never looked a big enough threat in the final third of the pitch, whilst Cardiff were kept at bay by a number of good saves and clearances from Southampton keeper and defence. A last minute goal always makes people feel bitterer though, especially as we were so close to a draw – which would have been a good result.
On a positive note, it was nice to see the enthusiasm and energy of our young players, as we gave Cardiff very little on the ball, whilst the return of Michael Svensson can only be a good thing, as he put in a solid performance and was probably my shout for Saints Man of the Match. Elsewhere, David McGoldrick will be pleased to have netted his first league goal for the club and it’ll be interesting to see if he can build on this.
My main concern is the depth of the squad. Its all well and good having the enthusiastic youngsters, but players like Euell, Skacel and Rasiak will be needed if we are to pick up results and it’s unfortunate that we are likely to see these players leave soon. Today for much of the game McGoldrick had to work very hard up front and it looked to me like he had a difficult time of things, but as we know Cardiff is a tough place to come and to be so close from a draw is at least creditable.
As for Cardiff, I didn’t feel they played particularly well today, but they got the result, which is the important thing. I feel that Cardiff will know they can play better and against teams who may give them a little more space, they could prove to be quite a force to beat, especially at home. Thompson took his goal well today and looked a threat in the air and once given time to form a partnership with Ross McCormack, who looked to have possessed a decent amount of pace - perhaps they could be onto something there.
I don’t think the Bluebirds played particularly fluent stuff today, much of this was down to our players not allowing the time and space on the ball, which was good for us and in general the home side’s midfield seemed to struggle, but Stephen McPhail seemed to be the player who kept the game ticking and the attacking threat alive through midfield, so for me he was their Man of the Match.
One thing I think Cardiff will look to make more of in the future is their set pieces, as Roger Johnson looked particularly lively from them and could have scored a couple more goals, whilst for us, I’d like to see us be more adventurous in the final third and I hope to see this in our next match – especially as we are at home.
By Richard Miles
^ Errr, sorry for the pretty bad picture.. Was quite far back on the terraces (had ticket for seating but it was f00king it down with rain so went on terrace instead
) and I didn't get any other ones.
Cardiff City Vs Southampton
Cardiff started the game quickly, with debutant Ross McCormack surging down the right hand side and crossing dangerously across the six yard box. However the Saints’ Lloyd James cleared well under pressure from Steven Thompson. Saints then replied with a mazy run of their own down the right side, with Jake Thomson making light work of make-shift left back Mark Kennedy and crossing towards the centre of the penalty area; Glenn Loovens was on hand to head clear, but Morgan Schneiderlin pinged the ball back into the box for Michael Svensson, who headed well over.
The next few moments were controversial, as twice the Southampton players in the attacking third closed down the Cardiff backline in menacing fashion, subsequently forcing them into nervy back passes. The first by Loovens was disregarded by the referee - who claimed the ball came off the player’s thigh, leaving the home goalkeeper feeling relieved. But there was nothing he could do about the next one, as Lee Holmes gratefully intercepted on a weak backpass by Johnson and Manchester United loanee Heaton pounced on the ball. Simon Gillett blasted the resulting in-direct free kick into the wall.
A frantic opening to the first half continued when Chris Perry slipped on the wet surface and Joe Ledley appeared to be clean through on goal, however he decided to pick out a pass for Peter Whittingham, rather than shot and the latter saw his shot closed down quickly by Andrew Surman at left back.
Southampton kept up the early pressure, as their quick closing down of players in midfield and in around the final third was paying off, Thomson winning a corner and Holmes floating one in for Svensson, who again headed over. The away side were working well as a team, as they collectively gave Cardiff little time on the ball; the younger players’ greater enthusiasm and desire to get to the ball first, was a cause of concern for Home fans, but although the Saints were applying a great deal of pressure in this first twenty minutes, they were creating few chances and David McGoldrick often found himself chasing on to hopeful balls.
Their inability to turn pressure into chances was to pay, as Cardiff slowly got a foothold on the game and it was indeed the home side that ended the first half in dominant fashion. First, Ledley teed up Thompson for a well struck shot, which was saved smartly by Davis, before Gavin Rae drilled a fierce effort just wide of the left hand post. McPhail passed for Thompson, who approached goal in a dogged manner, but Svensson made his shooting angle tight and the striker saw his shot well saved again.
Kelvin Davis rushed out of his box to tackle Gavin Rae, in a potentially threatening attack, before McNaughton’s cross was headed down by Thompson into the path of Whittingham, who shot wildly over the bar. Davis again made a fine save, this time tipping Joe Ledley’s goal-bound effort wide of the post, but there was little Davis could do about the next attack, as the home side finally made a breakthrough... Gavin Rae saw his shot blocked by a number of eager bodies who threw themselves in the way of the shot, but the ball came loose to THOMPSON who slotted the rebound home. It was a deserved goal for the hosts, who held off early pressure from Southampton and created numerous chances to ultimately breach the away side’s defence.
The Saints were resilient though and found themselves level pegging almost immediately, as half-time approached. Surman showed great strength to rob McNaughton of the ball, before crossing low for MCGOLDRICK to poach from close range and net his first league goal for the club.
Half Time: Cardiff City 1-1 Southampton
The second half was soon to go back to how things were, before Southampton equalised though, as Cardiff pushed for all three points in a gruelling 45 minutes.
Thompson beat the offside trap and laid off nicely for Ledley, who lacked composure when firing over the bar and Cardiff will feel that they should have got a second, when Roger Johnson was left unmarked from a corner and saw powerful header, very well saved by Davis, whilst Johnson was turning away to celebrate and he had a chance soon after from another corner, when he was left unmarked again and headed just inches wide; failing to make Southampton pay for their poor marking.
Substitute and new signing from Wolves, Jay Bothroyd linked up with Johnson from another set piece, but the striker saw his shot well held by Davis. And as the game went into the last twenty minutes, Cardiff attacked freely down the wings, with McPhail constantly threading the ball out wide for McCormack, Bothroyd and Sub Parry to cross, but all three saw their crosses cleared with some desperate defending from a solid defence.
Saints brought on Nathan Dyer and Bradley Wright-Phillips to add some flair and fresh legs to the cause, particularly as most of the team’s youngsters had run themselves into the ground, but they proved to be largely ineffectual. However they could have nicked all three points late on, when Surman whipped in a teasing free kick, which evaded everyone, including the outstretched foot of Svensson at the back post.
Cardiff were to have the last laugh though, as a stoppage time corner ensured a scramble in the box and JOHNSON flicked the ball goal wards... Davis appeared to have made a fantastic reaction save, tipping the ball onto the post, but the ball trickled over the line, as the goalkeeper desperately tried to claw the ball away. Harsh circumstances to win the game so late on, but probably a fair result in the end.
Summary
On the balance of play, a loss seems a fair result for Saints and although we battled hard for most of the game, we never looked a big enough threat in the final third of the pitch, whilst Cardiff were kept at bay by a number of good saves and clearances from Southampton keeper and defence. A last minute goal always makes people feel bitterer though, especially as we were so close to a draw – which would have been a good result.
On a positive note, it was nice to see the enthusiasm and energy of our young players, as we gave Cardiff very little on the ball, whilst the return of Michael Svensson can only be a good thing, as he put in a solid performance and was probably my shout for Saints Man of the Match. Elsewhere, David McGoldrick will be pleased to have netted his first league goal for the club and it’ll be interesting to see if he can build on this.
My main concern is the depth of the squad. Its all well and good having the enthusiastic youngsters, but players like Euell, Skacel and Rasiak will be needed if we are to pick up results and it’s unfortunate that we are likely to see these players leave soon. Today for much of the game McGoldrick had to work very hard up front and it looked to me like he had a difficult time of things, but as we know Cardiff is a tough place to come and to be so close from a draw is at least creditable.
As for Cardiff, I didn’t feel they played particularly well today, but they got the result, which is the important thing. I feel that Cardiff will know they can play better and against teams who may give them a little more space, they could prove to be quite a force to beat, especially at home. Thompson took his goal well today and looked a threat in the air and once given time to form a partnership with Ross McCormack, who looked to have possessed a decent amount of pace - perhaps they could be onto something there.
I don’t think the Bluebirds played particularly fluent stuff today, much of this was down to our players not allowing the time and space on the ball, which was good for us and in general the home side’s midfield seemed to struggle, but Stephen McPhail seemed to be the player who kept the game ticking and the attacking threat alive through midfield, so for me he was their Man of the Match.
One thing I think Cardiff will look to make more of in the future is their set pieces, as Roger Johnson looked particularly lively from them and could have scored a couple more goals, whilst for us, I’d like to see us be more adventurous in the final third and I hope to see this in our next match – especially as we are at home.
By Richard Miles
^ Errr, sorry for the pretty bad picture.. Was quite far back on the terraces (had ticket for seating but it was f00king it down with rain so went on terrace instead
) and I didn't get any other ones.
