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Cambridge United suffered their second match postponement in a week when tomorrow's match at Scarborough was called off this afternoon.
But they are not alone - only five of the scheduled Division Three matches survive and currently the matches at Darlington and Northampton are subject to pitch inspections in the morning. Tomorrow's fixtures in all divisions in England and Scotland are heavily affected by the freezing weather and snow.
Roy McFarland today echoed what a lot of United fans have been saying when he hit out at his team's gruelling treks to midwinter matches at either end of the country. As if Saturday's 10-hour round trip to Torquay wasn't enough, United face a New Year's Day journey to Scarborough.
"I'm very disappointed with the way these fixtures are organised," he said. "I can't see why we shouldn't have a derby match or two at this time of the year. It's not fair on the players or the supporters, who have to make these journeys often in the worst weather of the year."
The long trip back from Torquay must have more pleasant after collecting a hard-earned three points, particularly as promotion rivals Wigan and Carlisle also picked up full points away from home.
Jamie Barnwell's 32nd minute goal and some dogged defending from United settled a wind-blown affair at Plainmoor. Recent signing from Derby County Ian Ashbee made a winning debut, and the three points should restore some confidence after a recent costly trend of conceding late goals.
United went ahead on 32 minutes through in-form striker Barnwell. When his first shot from an Adie Hayes corner was blocked, he reacted faster than anybody else to hook the rebound over his right shoulder and into the top left hand corner.
Micah Hyde and David Preece ran the midfield and United were good value for their lead at the interval, but Torquay, with a strong wind at their backs, put them through a torrid second half with player coach Garry Nelson, Mark Hawthorne and Jamie Ndah all going close. Scott Barrett, Danny Granville and Jody Craddock all shone as United defended in numbers with few forays beyond the halfway line.
United line-up: Barrett, Matt Joseph, Granville, Preece, Craddock, Ashbee, Hayes, Hyde, Kyd (Richards 67), Barnwell, Beall (Thompson 82).
Sub Not Used: Turner.
After a precautionary pitch inspection at 11am this morning, today's match has been postponed due to frost on the playing surface. Stadium manager Ian Darler had covered the goalmouths with polythene as a precautionary measure and they were perfectly playable, but despite some weak sunshine this morning the pitch was too hard for the match to go ahead.
This is a financial blow to the club as they have missed out on an anticipated bumper holiday crowd and the re-arranged date is unlikely to attract such interest.
Young defender Ian Ashbee is set to make his Cambridge United debut in the important Boxing Day clash at home against Scunthorpe. The 20-year-old, who signed from Premiership Derby County a fortnight ago, is favourite to take the place of Paul Raynor, who starts a two-match suspension.
Roy McFarland believes that Cambridge United's season could depend on winning the mind games. Just two weeks after calling for more mental toughness from his players the manager watched his side concede a goal in injury time for the third game in a row.
"It does become a psychological thing. They are a young side and I have to help them get over it," he said.
That late goal proved costly this afternoon when Carlisle notched a 3-2 home win over United's Boxing Day rivals Scunthorpe to move above the U's into second spot, while leaders Fulham maintained their run with a win at Scarborough. Bottom club Brighton travel to Tommy Taylor's Leyton Orient tomorrow for Sky's midday match which is expected to be Peter Shilton's record 1000th league appearance.
The club received a financial boost today with the news that Sky TV have chosen The Abbey for a live Friday night match. The home clash against promotion rivals Carlisle United has been brought forward a day to Friday 21st February and will net the club a £30,000 fee.
Cambridge United faced Colchester for the second time in ten days, seeking revenge for the Auto-Windscreens Shield exit at The Abbey. Twice the U's went ahead against the run of play with teenage winger "Billy" Beall giving United the lead on 39. Scott Barrett performed heroics in United's goal but could not prevent former U's hero John Taylor's equalising on the hour.
Just three minutes later Paul Raynor restored the lead with a slightly bizarre goal from about thirty yards out. His speculative ball was lifted into the area and the Colchester 'keeper seemed to have it covered, only to somehow scoop the ball over his head and into the net. This was Raynor's last game for the U's before starting a two match suspension and his goal seemed to have ensured the victory, but after enduring a barrage of long balls to Taylor United conceded yet another costly late, late goal when Tony Adcock scored in injury time for Colchester.
Raynor admitted after the match that his goal owed something to the Colchester goalkeeper, saying, "It was a good strike but I think the goalkeeper will be a bit disappointed."
On the match he commented, "We didn't play particularly well. We showed flashes of what we can do and passed the ball about a bit at times, but we've got to be pleased with the point."
The late goal is the third conceded by United in as many games and Raynor echoed his manager when he added, "We're a bit naive in these positions lately, we've got to learn."
United line-up: Barrett, Matt Joseph, Granville, Preece, Craddock, Raynor, Hayes, Hyde, Kyd (Richards 84), Barnwell, Beall.
Subs not used: Thompson, Ashbee
Booked: Barnwell (dissent)
Cambridge United play at Colchester tomorrow evening and Paul Raynor will be available for his last game this year. After accumulating more than 21 penalty points the midfielder is forced out of Cambridge United's matches over Christmas against Scunthorpe and Torquay.
The 30-year-old's bookings contained a high percentage of yellow cards, promoting a warning about possible future fines to the players from manager Roy McFarland.
The build-up to tomorrow's derby clash at Colchester was interrupted so that McFarland and the players could visit the childrens' wards at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge.
"It was an eye-opener, especially for our young players," said the United boss. "Footballers don't get much time off over Christmas, but you don't feel sorry about that when you see the children and their parents who have to be in hospital at this time of the year.
"It made us all appreciate the courage of those kids and the dedication of the staff who look after them. It was a very worthwhile day for us."
United boss Roy McFarland has slammed Leyton Orient for pulling out of today's Capital League reserve match. The match against Tommy Taylor's reserves was due to kick-off at midday in London and McFarland complained, "They didn't have the courtesy to get in touch with me so that I could try to fix up another game."
Other than that there is a distinct lack of news from The Abbey at present, but there should be some team news tomorrow ahead of Friday's trip to Colchester.
A much improved performance from United contributed to an excellent top-of-the-table game. Jamie Barnwell resumed his scoring form to give the U's the lead on 58 minutes but Wigan equalised in the third minute of stoppage time. Their late goal saw them heart-breakingly - but probably deservedly - steal the draw.
United had failed to find the net in their two previous games and needed a good result today to boost confidence and morale and get the season back on track after two cup exits. The visitors are genuine promotion contenders and the teams played out an excellent game of football for the supporters, with Wigan creating more chances. However the scoreline was 0-0 at half-time.
One of the promising features of the game was the partnership of David Preece and Micah Hyde. Rarely far apart they were the sorcerer and his apprentice driving United on from midfield and it was Preece who burst forward just before the hour to come close to notching his first United goal. His shot was blocked but the ball fell to Jamie Barnwell who scrambled it into the Wigan net.
Wigan were forced to push forward in their search for an equaliser and United soaked up the pressure and looked increasingly dangerous on the break, but they were forced to pay for their misses when sub Paul Rogers snatched the equaliser deep into injury time.
Skipper Micah Hyde commented bluntly, "We had the game by the balls and we let it go. If they (Wigan) look at it honestly, I think we deserved to win. We should have got three points today."
On his own return to the sort of performance we now expect of him, he said, "I'm pleased I'm back on form again, but disappointed we gave away a goal late on. I'm back on song," he promised, "back on song."
United line-up: Barrett, Matt Joseph, Granville (Thompson 80), Preece, Craddock, Raynor, Hayes, Hyde, Kyd (Richards 92), Barnwell, Beall.
Sub not used: Wanless
Booked: Preece (dissent), Hayes (foul).
The old Corona building at the corner of the ground has been demolished and the club have applied for planning permission to turn it into a car park.
Next Friday's game at Colchester game is all-ticket for United fans, with 1000 terrace and 200 seated places available.
Tomorrow's Moose will appreciate a loud and hearty welcome from U's as he makes his 'debut'. Moosenet mailing list member Rob Woiwod will also be resplendent in the new home kit after the Moose's XXXL size took a little longer than normal to make!
As anticipated yesterday, Cambridge United have completed the signing of Ian Ashbee from Premiership side Derby County. He joins on a free transfer although it is understood that Derby may receive a percentage of any future transfer fee. However, 20-year-old Ashbee is unlikely to feature on Saturday as Roy McFarland says he is "not ready" for first team football yet.
United are set to sign young defender Ian Ashbee from Premiership Derby County after the 20-year-old former England youth international impressed manager Roy McFarland in reserve and practice matches. He will come in on a free transfer and is expected to move to the Abbey Stadium before the weekend, subject to the usual medical test.
Ashbee, from Birmingham, made his only senior appearance for the Rams under McFarland in the 1994-95 season when he started against Southend on the last day of the season - McFarland's last match as manager. Ashbee featured in two preseason friendlies under Jim Smith at the start of the 95-96 season, but figured in no other senior matches.
This summer Ashbee went on loan to Iceland's second division club IR Knattspyrnudeild. He was instrumental in keeping IR from being relegated by scoring 3 times and helping IR to a 4-2-2 record while he was there.
Meanwhile a former United player hit the news today in a cash wrangle. Former United youth star Kofi Nyamah was released by the U's last year and followed ex-manager Gary Johnson to Kettering Town. He spent the past two weeks on trial with Stoke City and played in a reserve match, but at the end of the spell the first division outfit wanted to sign him for no fee. Kettering, who sacked Johnson earlier this season, have blasted the Potteries side for trying to sign one of their players without paying.
"At least we can concentrate on the league now."
Isn't that what we say now? Last night's defeat concluded our interest in even the most minor cup competition and ended any hopes of a money-spinning cup run. We used to be quite good at those ...
As forecast, Roy McFarland made three team changes from Saturday, Wanless for Preece, Turner for Kyd and Richards for Barnwell. In a dull, plodding game Tony Richards gave us noticeably more strength up front with his ability to hold up the ball and even hit the post from 18 yards in the first half. If that had gone in there is no telling what effect it may have had on the game but good chances were few and far between. After Richards hit the post Robbie Turner had a header turned past the post.
United created even fewer chances in the second half and Jamie Barnwell and Marc Joseph came on for Richards and Raynor for the last 15 minutes, but made little difference. Meanwhile Colchester's only other chance came from a long diagonal ball over Granville, which their forward put past the far post.
This uninspiring game was heading grimly towards extra-time until the 89th minute. Ironically it was John Taylor, a hero of our most memorable campaigns, who set up the last-gasp goal which decided the match. Taylor rose to meet a Joe Dunne cross in the box and nodded it down for Steve Whitton to beat Paul Wanless to it, poking a left-foot shot at full stretch past Scott Barrett.
United line-up: Barrett, Matt Joseph, Craddock, Granville, Hayes, Hyde, Beall, Wanless, Raynor (Marc Joseph 81), Turner, Richards (Barnwell 78).
Sub not used: Thompson
Booked: Raynor (foul)
Roy McFarland was working hard today to lift his dejected team for another cup tie at the Abbey tomorrow night, when we face Colchester in the Auto-Windscreens Shield.
"We can't afford to mope around and feel sorry for ourselves," said the Cambridge United boss after the numbing home defeat by FA Cup giantkillers Woking.
As the United team come to terms with the defeat that the press came to write about, United skipper Micah Hyde commented on Woking's supporters: "A lot of the time it seemed as though we were playing away from home. Their fans really got behind them."
He also admitted his side's biggest mistake: "We paid Clive Walker too much respect. We should have been much tighter on him."
McFarland says he will make changes for tomorrow's derby against Colchester but insists he is giving the competition high priority, and not sending out a weakened team.
What can I say? We crashed out of the FA Cup after slipping on the perennial Woking banana skin. The Cards will be the nation's favourite underdogs as they slide into the third round draw hoping for a Premiership offering.
Nine of the Woking team have played for league clubs and their team's average age was around 27, giving them collectively six more years of experience than United. In the kind of Cup tie atmosphere our compact stadium can generate with a near 6,000 crowd, it was a crucial factor. Most of the home side had never played in a game like it, whilst Woking were fresh from taming Millwall in their fearsome Den. Roared on by their red army, who often out-shouted the home contingent, the Conference club did not have a visible nerve among them.
Cambridge had most of the first-half possession, but made little headway against the Woking defence. Micah Hyde and Paul Raynor often linked effectively as United swept forward with pace and promise in front of The Abbey's biggest crowd of the season; just under 6,000. Our best chance came just before the interval when Paul Raynor found himself unmarked at the far post, only to have his close-range shot blocked by Woking goalkeeper Laurence Batty. Earlier, Batty had made a fine save at the feet of Billy Beall as the winger advanced dangerously into the Woking penalty area and a minute later he was lunging low to hold Danny Granville's header from a corner.
After this attractive early spell things began to fray somewhat at the edges. Passes were misplaced and a Woking shot even flew over the bar and out of the ground.
The Cards always looked dangerous despite the long periods of Cambridge pressure but the ever-green Clive Walker, at 39 surely the oldest man still playing in the FA Cup, was closely and effectively guarded by Danny Granville - until the 75th minute. Adi Hayes allowed him a yard of space on the edge of a well-populated penalty area, he looked up and produced a superb 25-yard strike which beat Cambridge goalkeeper Scott Barrett before going in off the post. Whether it was intended as a shot or a cross is irrelevant, it was a spectacular goal and I am sick of seeing it replayed on the TV already!
United had to press forward in search of an equaliser and it was that man Walker who exploited the space eight minutes later. He launched the move which ended with Robin Taylor scrambling their second goal after Barrett had blocked a shot by Darren Hay.
At the final whistle the Woking team celebrated in front of their ecstatic supporters, an army of press photographers and the TV cameras, leaving the stunned United players to trudge away to their dressing room.
"It was going to take something a little bit different to score today," said Walker. "In the second half, they gave me too much space and I had seen the keeper off his line. The Millwall match was great, something special, but today was just as good."
United line-up: Barrett, Matt Joseph, Granville, Preece (Thompson 82), Craddock, Raynor, Hayes (Turner 82), Hyde, Kyd, Barnwell, Beall.
Sub not used: Paul Wanless
Tony Richards is back to boost Cambridge United in tomorrow's FA Cup clash with giantkillers Woking. The blue-rinsed striker, who has missed a month's action with Achilles tendon trouble, proved his fitness in a practice match against Cambridge University. Roy McFarland immediately added him to the squad for the second round tie at the Abbey Stadium, but is not revealing who will drop out of the 14.
Tomorrow's United team could be on an FA Cup bonus of £500 a man if they knock out non-League Woking. But the prize, around three weeks basic pay for some of the side's youngsters, would depend on the draw for the third round and that will mean an anxious wait until the weekend's winners go into the hat at 10.15 pm on Monday night.
Meanwhile Woking boss Geoff Chapple has featured heavily in the press today, claiming that his giantkillers face a tougher task at the Abbey tomorrow than against second division leaders Millwall at the Den.
"Millwall are a very good footballing side, but they couldn't adapt against us," he said. "Cambridge play a bit, but they can mix it up as well."
Chapple has done his homework on Cambridge and watched the third division match against Mansfield on Tuesday.
Woking's Junior Hunter may miss the clash as he has a pulled hamstring, while striker Darren Hay admits he will have to keep reminding himself "red shirts, red shirts," whenever he is about to pass the ball tomorrow. The Cup draw has plunged the ex-Cambridge United striker into an identity crisis as not only has he just returned to play for the Cards after a second spell with United, on loan, but the Biggleswade-based player trains regularly at the Abbey Stadium.
Cambridge United fans are in danger of being outshouted at Saturday's FA Cup clash with non-League Woking.
The Vauxhall Conference club's shock victory over second division leaders Millwall in the last round has sparked a bout of Cup fever in Surrey and Woking's entire allocation of 2,200 tickets was snapped up within two days of going on sale.
Like United, the Conference side were in action on Tuesday night, slipping to a 2-0 home defeat by Welling Utd in the Spalding Cup.
"No more offside traps at set-pieces," was the order from Roy McFarland after the fraught 2-1 victory over Mansfield Town.
The ex-England defender was appalled to see his side give away a goal with a muddled manoeuvre which left three opponents in the clear.
The United boss has returned to one of his former clubs to bring in two young players from Premiership Derby County. Ian Ashbee, a 6ft 1ins, 20-year-old defender, and 21-year-old defender/midfielder Wayne Sutton are having trials at the Abbey Stadium. Both players have had some first team experience in Division One.
Cambridge United got back to winning ways last night in a game where all the incidents were in the second half and they came close to being embarrassed by ten men.
Jamie Barnwell had what appeared to be a perfectly good goal disallowed in the first half, and Mansfield were reduced to ten men after Stuart Watkiss was sent off two minutes into the second half for a bad foul on Paul Raynor. United took the lead in the 55th minute when Jamie Barnwell scored at the far post when the goalkeeper could only block a Michael Kyd shot.
However the visitors equalised within a minute of the Cambridge goal, when Brian Kilcline caught the home team out at a free kick. The ten men looked sure to take the lead nine minutes later when they were awarded a dubious penalty after Stewart Hadley tumbled in the area, but justice was done when John Doolan blazed over the crossbar.
The U's supporters barely had time for sighs of relief as within 60 seconds the match swung again with Michael Kyd taking advantage of a defensive error to drive a shot under goalkeeper Ian Bowling.
United line-up: Barrett, Matt Joseph, Granville, Preece, Craddock, Raynor, Hayes, Hyde, Kyd, Barnwell, Beall.
Subs Not Used: Turner, Thompson, Wanless.
Booked: Craddock
After Saturday's defeat at Doncaster United have a run of four home games in 11 days, and boss Roy McFarland will be playing mind games with his team this week after their second consecutive away defeat.
"We have to work on mental toughness," he said. "We gave it away after leading and looking in control at Doncaster. There's a bit of a soft underbelly. I don't mean in the physical sense, it's a mental thing, probably due to having so many youngsters in the side. We allowed ourselves to be pushed back by Doncaster, and made life difficult for ourselves by doing things like trying to dribble the ball out of our own box."
McFarland knows his team have to tighten up as they go into a week of testing League and FA Cup games, although they are all at The Abbey. Mansfield Town, tomorrow's visitors, recorded a good 2-0 victory over promotion-contenders Scarborough at the weekend, while Woking fired some impressive warning shots across the bows before Saturday's FA Cup clash by hammering Altrincham 7-1 in the Vauxhall Conference, including a brace from ex-U Darran Hay.