Suomi Shrimper
First XI
This took too long to write. MtS has beaten me to it (and a good report too!), but I may as well post the fruits of my labours.
Just got back from Selhurst Park. Here's my two penneth:
First Half
A great early break really set the tone for the first half, Bradders worked his socks off again and could have easily put us a goal up within 30 seconds. Whilst Palace managed to get the ball into the box a few times, there was always a white shirt waiting to clear the ball well out of danger. A couple of sloppy passes aside, the team seemed to gel well, with some great connecting play between the midfield and the defence allowing us to build our attacks. A far cry from the hit and hope days of Steve Wignall! Freddy's goal could not have been more deserved as Palace were consistently run ragged by JCR and Francis, whose overlaps confused the hell out of the Championship side. Guttridge looked unusually out of sorts for the first half hour, misreading passes more than a couple of times, but seemed to shake it off.
Second Half
As Chesterfield will testify, it only takes ten minutes to turn a game on its head. As Palace won a corner, I worried for the first time in the match. Had we shaken off our notorious weakness in defending set pieces? As it turns out, no. 'Southend Reject' Leon Cort popped up behind the stand support in front of me and nodded into the corner of the net. Turns out we should have booed him before the game instead. I suspect most of the 1700 travelling Shrimpers expected we'd concede at some point, so we weren't too disheartened. However, before we could regain the momentum that had made us look the better team for so long, we were sucker punched by a dubious goal. Half-time substitute Dougie Freedman broke clear of the back four and came out on top in the subsequent 1-on-1 with Darryl. Early reports say he beat the offside trap, but I wouldn't mind seeing the replay, as he looked at least a yard or two in front of the back four when the ball was played. When Palace were awarded another corner not long afterwards, the outcome seemed inevitable. The remainder of the game was fairly even, with the Shrimpers probably having the better of the chances, but there was a feeling of inevitability that we would be leaving empty handed.
Overall
Unable to be at the friendlies due to work, or the Stoke game due to family commitments, this was my first glimpse of the new-look Championship Shrimpers. The already-lauded triangles and noticeably more accurate passing, particularly short and cross-field, added a touch of class to the side, and will provide us with some entertaining matches. I predicted we'd finish 12th this season and, provided we tighten up our defending from set pieces, I see no reason to change that prediction. Regardless of where we might finish though, I'd say we're staying up.
Man of the Match
JCR - Popped up all over the place. Ran the Palace left wing ragged tonight, and didn't shy away from a tackle either. He does still like to take on defenders (and was guilty of overdoing it once or twice), but he generally seems to have learnt when to lay it off or cross it to someone else. And his 25-yard shot wasn't far off either!
Just got back from Selhurst Park. Here's my two penneth:
First Half
A great early break really set the tone for the first half, Bradders worked his socks off again and could have easily put us a goal up within 30 seconds. Whilst Palace managed to get the ball into the box a few times, there was always a white shirt waiting to clear the ball well out of danger. A couple of sloppy passes aside, the team seemed to gel well, with some great connecting play between the midfield and the defence allowing us to build our attacks. A far cry from the hit and hope days of Steve Wignall! Freddy's goal could not have been more deserved as Palace were consistently run ragged by JCR and Francis, whose overlaps confused the hell out of the Championship side. Guttridge looked unusually out of sorts for the first half hour, misreading passes more than a couple of times, but seemed to shake it off.
Second Half
As Chesterfield will testify, it only takes ten minutes to turn a game on its head. As Palace won a corner, I worried for the first time in the match. Had we shaken off our notorious weakness in defending set pieces? As it turns out, no. 'Southend Reject' Leon Cort popped up behind the stand support in front of me and nodded into the corner of the net. Turns out we should have booed him before the game instead. I suspect most of the 1700 travelling Shrimpers expected we'd concede at some point, so we weren't too disheartened. However, before we could regain the momentum that had made us look the better team for so long, we were sucker punched by a dubious goal. Half-time substitute Dougie Freedman broke clear of the back four and came out on top in the subsequent 1-on-1 with Darryl. Early reports say he beat the offside trap, but I wouldn't mind seeing the replay, as he looked at least a yard or two in front of the back four when the ball was played. When Palace were awarded another corner not long afterwards, the outcome seemed inevitable. The remainder of the game was fairly even, with the Shrimpers probably having the better of the chances, but there was a feeling of inevitability that we would be leaving empty handed.
Overall
Unable to be at the friendlies due to work, or the Stoke game due to family commitments, this was my first glimpse of the new-look Championship Shrimpers. The already-lauded triangles and noticeably more accurate passing, particularly short and cross-field, added a touch of class to the side, and will provide us with some entertaining matches. I predicted we'd finish 12th this season and, provided we tighten up our defending from set pieces, I see no reason to change that prediction. Regardless of where we might finish though, I'd say we're staying up.
Man of the Match
JCR - Popped up all over the place. Ran the Palace left wing ragged tonight, and didn't shy away from a tackle either. He does still like to take on defenders (and was guilty of overdoing it once or twice), but he generally seems to have learnt when to lay it off or cross it to someone else. And his 25-yard shot wasn't far off either!
