| Doncaster Rovers | 0-0 | Cambridge United |
| Att: 1,258 |
United line-up: Barrett, Chenery, Wilson, Marc Joseph, Foster, Campbell, Wanless, Rees, Benjamin (Taylor 69'), Butler, Williamson (Barnwell 57').
Sub Not Used: Matt Joseph.
Booked: Rees, Butler.
[The Abbey Rabbit match report] [The Cambridge Evening News match report]
The Abbey Rabbit match report:
To suggest that the point that both sides obtained was more than either deserved just about sums up this totally abject display. Against the side bottom of the league who haven't picked up a point at home and have shipped a shed load of goals, United were truly dire - and in a match frighteningy reminiscent of last season's encounter at Belle Vue, seemed to play without passion or commitment. Indeed, seeing as Donny had plenty of both you couldn't have complained if the home side picked up all three points.
United reverted to 5-3-2, with Williamson as the additional midfielder and Butler and Benjamin up front. However, you play a 9ft centre-forward, guaranteed to scare the shit out of most defences - and then you deprive him of any decent crosses. On the plus side, "Fash" did show us more than useful touches on the ground and created one or two half-chances which were spurned.
It has to be said that this was a game that we were never likely to lose - Doncaster were truly woeful and look destined for the Conference. However, on this showing so are we! Rees was abysmal! Despite Wanless and Williamson being as industrious as ever we really lacked any creative outlet. Despite our three centre-halves snuffing everything out and never looking really in trouble, neither Wilson or Chenery seemed capable of pushing forward and hence we were deprived of any width.
Second-half substitutions saw Barnwell for Williamson and Shaggy for Fash. However, if anything we were even worse second-half than first - although with Barnwell spending most of the time in the middle of the park this wasn't really surprising. When Barnwell was able to use his pace to blistering effect there was no support - as United really did slip back into their bad old ways...
A chance of salvaging a win was snuffed out when Butler had a header disallowed for pushing(?). However to be fair we didn't deserve anything from the game...
We've now had two disappointing performances on the trot and from these the following points are obvious:
Rabbit Ratings:
Barrett 6 Nothing to do Chenery 4 Poor Wilson 5 Only marginally better than Chenery Foster 8 MoM - cool, calm and unflustered. Joseph 6 Only his distribution lets him down Campbell 6 Another reasonable game Rees 5 Ran about a lot, gave the ball away (a lot) Wanless 7 Mr Dynamo Williamson 6 Unlucky to be subbed - always looked lively Benjamin 7 Good touches on the deck, but no decent service Butler 6 Uncomfortable playing an out and out strikers roll subs: Barnwell 5 Played far too deep Taylor 5 Introduced too late to influence the game Shaggy (warming up) "How long have we played (second-half)?" man in crowd "About 15 minutes" Shaggy looks surprised man in crowd "Yes, but it seems like a hell of a lot longer"
SteveJ@AbbeyRabbit
The Cambridge Evening News match report:
IF ever a team were condemned by faint praise: "Cambridge aren't the worst team we've played this season."
Thus spake Martin Pemberton, a striker for rock-bottom Rovers, a side without a home point or clean sheet before United turned up.
According to the League table, Roy McFarland's side were supposed to be one of the best, but as against Barnet the previous week they were unrecognisable as the men who hit the heights at Orient.
Doncaster have improved since Peterborough and Orient hammered them at unlovely Belle Vue, draws at Mansfield and Scunthorpe proved that.
But for the couple of hundred travelling fans it was worrying to see them gain such a comfortable point.
There were no heroics needed from goalkeeper Gary Ingham who was not called on to make a real save in 90 minutes.
His defence coped so easily with United's powder puff attack, it was 17 minutes into the second half before he even had to field his first ball from a striker, a shot from Trevor Benjamin hit with all the venom of a back pass.
"I don't know what he was up to," said McFarland. "He usually hammers the ball when he gets through like that. But he did't really shoot or pass."
If the United boss analysed every other move which broke down, or pass which went astray, he would have been burning gallons of midnight oil.
There was a promising start, in which Benjamin featured prominently, the powerfully-built teenager winning tackles and deflecting defenders like flies.
But none of his runs or passes linked with partner Martin Butler or the midfield men, and after a quarter of an hour or so the game sank irretrievably into dreary, error-strewn stalemate.
In the absence of injured top scorer Michael Kyd, McFarland decided to go for a pace replacement, dropping John Taylor, pushing Butler up front with Benjamin, and drafting David Williamson into midfield.
It produced an attack which went nowhere, fast. And as hurrying and scurrying was what Rovers did best, the result was a high speed mess.
Hardly anything happened in the first half to deflect the interest of the press box from the vociferous protests against Doncaster's unofficial chairman, the almost universally hated Ken Richardson.
Not content with leaflets, and painted slogans in the ground the angry fans, were wearing specially made "Richardson out" T-shirts.
"We have to try to ignore it and get on with our game," said Pemberton, which they did during a second half when he and his partner, the splendidly named Prince Moncrieffe, were a greater threat in front of goal than United.
They each fired shots inches wide in the 70th and 77th minutes, before Pemberton went racing through, forcing Scott Barrett to make a brave save at his feet.
The situation was crying out for the experience of Taylor to replace Benjamin's rawness, and United's cause might have been better served if the switch had not been delayed until there was only 20 minutes to go.
At that point nothing would have been lost by also pitching in Matt Joseph to see if one of his runs from defence might unsettle the home defence, but the out-of-contract Player of the Year remained on the substitutes' bench.
Jamie Barnwell, swapped for Williamson , and Taylor forced the Rovers' rearguard to work harder in the closing stages for a draw which was greeted like a famous victory.
They were well worth it on run of what little play there was, and it would have been harsh on them if United's disallowed, 79th minute "goal" had counted.
One Sunday newspaper scribe, desperate for an angle, described the incident as "controversial," but there was no doubt Butler pushed Lee Warren as the defender headed the ball past his own keeper.
© Copyright Cambridge Evening News 1997
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