|
Cambridge United: (4-3-3) Barrett, Chenery, Ashbee, Duncan, Joseph, Campbell, Wanless, Beall (Preece 80), Butler, Kyd (Taylor 84), Benjamin.
Sub Not Used: Wilson.
Booked: Duncan (40' violent conduct), Joseph (73' foul).
Hartlepool Utd: Hollund, Knowles, Lucas, Barron, Lee, Ingram, Clark (Di Lella 64), Miller, Midgley (Irvine 64), Howard, Beech (McDonald 64).
Booked: Ingram (67' foul).
Ref: T Jones (Barrow-in-Furness).
Shots On Target: Cambridge 7, Hartlepool 5
Corners: Cambridge 6, Hartlepool 1
[Julie Mansfield's match report] [Hartlepool feedback] [My summary of media reports]
Julie Mansfield's match report:
Well, after getting off to a shaky start, conceding within the first 5 minutes, we settled down. The pitch was really boggy which didn't help.....
We got a corner on 17 minutes, and scored from the set piece. The ball was played into the far post, Wanless headed back across goal, and Butler scored with a diving header. The teams went in at half-time fairly equal.
After the break we were a lot better, the passing and set pieces were worked out well. We were shooting towards the United fans, the second goal came from an excellent header by Wanless. The third was a great move and Butler did well not to give up on the edge of the box, he managed to slide the ball across the goal and in at the far post. We were cruising now and we scored again, only for the referee to disallow it, apparently hand ball!!!
The Hartlepool manager did a Barry Fry and brought on a treble substituition, in which they managed to score another two goals. At the start we would have been happy with an away draw, but we should have won. Does this sound familiar?????? Never mind we are looking good for next Saturday.
Can anyone answer the question as to why so many people look so miserable even when we are winning??? They travel a 500 mile round trip and look as miserable as sin, even at 3-1 they sit with their arms folded and don't even cheer. At 3-1 we were going mental, at least for 30 minutes anyway!!!! I can't wait to see the goals on telly.
See you all Saturday.... Julie
I also received some feedback from Kev who maintains the main Hartlepool web site (http://fly.to/itn) and it makes quite nice reading if you forget about their late equaliser!
He wrote: "At 3-1 down I was stood in the Town End thinking, 'I've done it again, whenever I mail Andrea before a Pools Cambridge match we lose'. Luckily Gastavo 'kicky ball' Di Lella came to our rescue and snatched an unlikely point.
Why are you so low in the third division ? Although Pools are not playing well at the moment and even after an early goal you dominated the middle hour of that match but couldn't hold on. We have made the Vic something of a fortress this season, even though we have not won as many as we would like, we have only lost once, but it did look like that was going to be defeat number two.
Players who impressed me : I'm not going to know the names so I hope you can guess them. Michael Kyd went past Richard Lucas at will. Although Lucas isn't brilliant he only gets beat 3 times a match at most. All of the defence, tall and strong giving Howard no chance, although he did beat one of them to set up the final goal."
Summary of media reports:
As anticipated, Roy McFarland sent out an unchanged side this afternoon, and they came within two minutes of becoming only the second side to win at The Victoria Ground this season.
Hartlepool started brightly and took an early lead through Tommy Miller in the fourth minute, the first-year pro finishing a move he started. But United levelled when Paul Wanless nodded a corner kick back across goal for Martin Butler to score with a diving header. Due to suspension and a long injury lay-off, the striker's 17th minute goal was his first since December in that controversial game at Stevenage Borough in the FA Cup replay.
Shortly after the break United took control with two quick-fire goals. In the 53rd minute Paul Wanless powered home a header from ten yards thanks to some poor marking at a corner, and a minute later Butler added another. 'Billy' Beall lofted the ball forward from the half-way line and Butler received the ball on the corner of the penalty area with his back to goal. The former Walsall man twisted and turned past his defender, and from ten yards out squeezed the ball home from a narrow angle, his tenth goal of an interrupted season.
United should have cruised home as comfortable winners and could even have been 4-1 leaders in the 61st minute. Hartlepool goalkeeper Martin Hollund dropped a cross and Paul Wanless won the scramble for the loose ball to force it over the goal-line, but referee Mr Jones somehow judged the keeper had been fouled and chalked the goal off.
Then in the 64th minute Hartlepool made a triple substitution. One of the new men was Argentinian midfielder Gustafo Di Lella, who pounced on a rebound to score in the 71st minute after Scott Barrett had parried his initial shot. The goal set up a tense finale and McFarland threw old heads David Preece and John Taylor into the fray to add some experience to the U's side, but it was the same man who equalised for Pools in the 88th minute, volleying Howard's flick-on.
United fell one place to 16th in the table and the two dropped points must surely have ended any talk of making the play-offs, however much we might like that to be the case. But the result does extend United's unbeaten run to seven games as we look ahead to the derby against Peterborough United on next Saturday. The P*sh beat champions Notts County 1-0 last night on Sky TV to keep alive their own slim play-off chances.
Many thanks to Julie for her report and Kev for the feedback.
Back to Match fixtures, results and reports
Back to Cambridge United index