Freedom Football

Left it late for my annual visit to Craven Cottage this season but I was rewarded with an enjoyable day at the match which in the style at Fulham is how football ought to be. With opponents Reading already relegated this freed up the mind to focus purely on the game and forget what might be happening elsewhere. Indeed the end of season mania was firmly left in the pub pre match as we voyeuristically watched the final day of the Football League in the aptly named Temperance a hostelry just busy enough to enjoy a pre match pint with the buzz of football talk.

A brisk walk in the sunshine through Bishop's Park took me to the away end and a fixture I had regularly watched in the late 80s/early 90s in an altogether more sedate atmosphere. These games were played in Division Three before crowds around the 4,000 mark and were low scoring affairs, the faded glory of the Cottagers summed up by the minor celebrities such as the Oxo Dad and Duffy from Casualty brought onto the pitch to perform the half time draw, and the bitter men who stood in the paddock of the Stevenage Road stand next to the Cottage shaking their fists at the steepling open terrace of the away end.

Although the roof to cover the still temporary feeling seats on the terrace unfortunately obscures the view, at least it creates an atmosphere with the away fans buffered by the unique neutral zone. Freed from the worry of their fate, the Reading fans were determined to enjoy their day out by the Thames, creating a raucous atmosphere to which their team responded with their biggest win of the season. All this was in spite of the unnecessary attentions of the inappropriately named WISE stewards who seemed to spend most of the game trying to confiscate Mr Blobby.

Reading started the game in fine form, deservedly taking the lead from a Hal Robson-Kanu penalty. As the half drew on Fulham came in to the game but found their path to goal blocked by the outstanding Alex McCarthy who looks as though he may one day justify the chants of England's number 1. However a change following the opening goal to boost the home teams attack with the addition of Hugo Rodallega seem to have the reverse effect by the way the impressive David Ruiz was moved into a more withdrawn role.

Reading justified their half time lead by pioneering a second half goal fest which on the one hand reinforced the best league in the world tag with the concomitant excitement but on the other the number of unforced defensive errors suggested that this was a game more of Championship quality.

Despite striker Pawel Pogrebnyak appearing to play with the hand brake on, his team mates needed no stimulus, scoring three goals marked by the quality of the finish. Taking advantage of a deep lying one paced centre back pairing of Hangeland and Senderos, Robson-Kanu and Le Fondre maintained the Royals lead before Karacan sealed the points with a shot drilled in along the ground from the edge of the penalty area.

The goals only served to exhort the already buoyant away support to new heights of glee at this unexpected turn of events regularly pointing out the incredible nature of the win. Fulham did belatedly wake up to the fact that they are not quite safe from relegation with Ruiz spearheading their comeback by scoring two goals, but on the rare occasions that McCarthy was unable to stop any further scoring attempts the woodwork came to Reading's rescue.

Thus with both teams going for it in the style of promotion/relegation death match, both sets of fans were treated an extraordinarily open second half which went some way to justifying the ticket price. Looking ahead Fulham need to address their decline if they are to maintain their Premier League status next season, whilst its clear that Reading have the makings of a team which can hold steady in the Championship. So it will be the signings made in the summer which will be crucial in inspiring each club to better themselves next season. 

A relaxing afternoon ended with a stroll back to the Temperance where we were briefly joined by Reading legend Adie Williams. It somehow summed up the day that he was able to freely chat with fans despite the Premier League hype, and proves yet again that a trip to Craven Cottage is the best value day out at the match in London.

Crafty Cottagers

I finished my Arsenal themed festive football programme with a stroll down the River Thames to see the Gunners visit to Craven Cottage. As I wandered along the riverside, the crowd growing as we got nearer to ever looming floodlights I pondered a couple of firsts: the first time I had walked to an Arsenal game, the first time I would see a side play at each of the top four levels of the English game. I had first visited the Cottage when Fulham were marooned in Division Three, worse was to follow and I saw them at their nadir as they flirted with the bottom of Division Four. This was followed by the arrival of Mohamed Al-Fayed and his millions to send them back to the top and I made sure I popped in during their brief stay in Division Two. The ground was then transformed whilst the Cottagers moved in with QPR when I saw them play in Europe. The transformation of the Cottage into an all seater stadium managed to keep the homely nature of the ground with the closeness of the pitch and the large crowds attracted by Premier League football creating a suitable atmosphere. The support has changed too, the hardcore of locals now augmented by the well heeled residents of this wealthy borough attracted by seeing the best English football has to offer. I suppose the longevity of Fulham's stay in the top division has converted many of the new arrivals into supporters but the creativity employed by the club's Marketing department to fill the ground every week reflects the non stop effort required to maximise income and minimise reliance on the loans from Chairman Mo. One of the ticketing innovations has been the introduction of a neutral area next to the away section at the Putney End. Taking my seat here there is clearly a proper mix of home and away fans with no problems throughout the evening. Unfortunately although I had as good a view of the pitch as Wojciech Szczesny all the action took place at the Hammersmith end. 

In summary Arsenal had the better of the first half whilst Fulham dominated the second. Yes Gervinho could have had a penalty, with the referee perhaps dissuaded by his exaggerated fall to earth. Yes Arsenal should really have scored a second after Laurent Koscielny's headed opener, despite David Stockdale excellent last ditch saves. But Bryan Ruiz provided a real threat from Fulham and the half was characterised by two tired teams frequently giving the ball away with Arsenal doing most to profit from the mistakes. Fulham's approach to the second half was admirable. Unlike Wolves and QPR in Arsenal's previous two games they were not cowed by the deficit and went for broke to get back into the game. Wenger's response in withdrawing attacking wingers for more defensive midfielders merely served to facilitate Fulham setting up camp in the Arsenal half. There were early bookings in the half for Johan Djourou and Alex Song but neither player moderated their behaviour so it was no surprise when the former departed early. Likewise although going down to ten men hardly helped the Arsenal cause there was an inevitability about the Fulham equaliser and subsequent winner with the Gunners looking played out. 

I suppose it was unlikely that Arsenal would be left out of the festive shock defeat club with the four games in quick succession seeing the Premier League turn into the Championship for a fortnight. Whereas some might see this as a good thing with the mistakes caused by fatigue meaning unexpected defeats on every matchday, this is at the expense of quality and if anything I would prefer it if all of the top four divisions slimmed down by at least two clubs (four in the Championship's case). If nothing else at least there would be more time for Cup competitions which might mean they are taken more seriously.

Regardless a trip to Craven Cottage is highly recommended and as I wandered home in the moonlight I pondered their place in my selection of Desert Island grounds, deciding they should be elevated to join the likes of York Road, Highbury, Elm Park, and the pre renovation Deepdale and Turf Moor.

Dense

The week before Christmas provided an opportunity for another dose of European football at London's loveliest ground, Craven Cottage. With a ticket in the main Riverside stand costing just £15 for a great view of the action (see above) and the game being very much alive due to Fulham needing a win to guarantee qualification from the Europa League group stage, it was a suitable occasion to meet old friends for a Christmas drink. Entering the Temperance pre match the tone for an odd evening was set when a large group of OB fans set themselves up for the game by playing Scrabble.

As the game got going there seemed to be nothing to stop Fulham strolling to a win against a seemingly compliant Danish team. Despite fielding a weakened team the likes of youngsters Marcel Gecov and Kerim Frei created the foundation for Fulham to take a half time 2-0 lead through Clint Dempsey and Frei with consummate skill in an impressive first half performance which gave little cause to check what was going on in the other group game in Poland.

Half time brought the reassuring presence of David Hamilton on the touchline and after the break little changed with the only criticism being a rather harsh judgement that Fulham were guilty of overplaying their attacks without getting a shot in. The game turned just after the hour when Hans Henrik Andreasen pulled a goal back from a free kick which exposed the defects in a badly constructed Fulham wall. This triggered an attack of nerves in the Fulham ranks especially when the mighty Eric Djemba-Djemba entered the fray for OB.

With Wisla winning in Krakow an OB equaliser would knock the Cottagers out and this outcome started to have an inevitable feel about as the goal transformed the Danish performance. Still time ticked away and the three minutes of stoppage time were almost up when OB mounted one last attack. In the simplest of moves down the right wing a cross was swung into the penalty area where it was met by the head of Djilby Fall to score with what proved to be the last touch of the game, the referee blowing for full time as OB celebrated with their small but hardy support and Fulham fell to their knees in as sad a state as the woeful Michael Jackson statue we humbly filed past on the way out.

Post Script - Champions de l'Europe

Just when I thought my season was over the opportunity to add an inconsequential post script presented itself when I discovered that the Women's Champions League Final was due to be held at Craven Cottage. Advertised by way of flags flying from lampposts along King Street and the Fulham Palace Road, an entry fee of £5 seemed too good to pass up and so I found myself heading down to the river after work last Thursday with a friend as we had done many times before the previous season to watch Fulham's amazing European adventure.

The number of outside broadcast trucks in the road leading up to the ground suggested this was a big occasion and the crowd milling around the ground looked like giving it a sufficient audience. With a splendid programme available for £2 the whole matchday experience provided a pleasing contrast to the financial bonanza that would be taking place on Saturday at Wembley.

Entering the ground we paused to look at the kitsch curio which is the new Michael Jackson statue (presumably this means UEFA won't be hosting any schoolboy football here) before taking our seats in the Riverside stand next to the Directors box.

This was the first time we had attended a women's football match so what to expect? Would the cliches about skill compensating for strength be true? Would the coach lambast the team at half time by accusing them of playing like a bunch of men? Certainly it would be a professional affair as the tenth European final would be contested by two full time outfits: Olympique Lyonnais and FFC Turbine Potsdam.

This was to be a rematch of the 2010 final when Potsdam triumphed in a penalty shootout, the first final to be decided in one night with the first eight all being two leg ties. As their name suggests Lyonnais were the women's section of the famous Lyon club but Potsdam's story was more interesting. They were also an offshoot of a men's club but their forebear was based in the former East Germany with the word Turbine being a link to their origins as works team of an Energy company. Unlike all their other East German counterparts Potsdam had prospered after the fall of the Berlin Wall to become the best women's team in the unified nation. However despite the appeal of their backstory we had ended up sitting in the Lyonnais section so decided to root for the French.

Any late misgivings about the status of the game were allayed by the appearance of Michel Platini to our right and the game kicked off in front of a crowd in the region of 10,000.

The opening exchanges saw the Germans look every inch the title holders with a couple of well organised attacks almost exposing a frail looking French defence.

However the French soon played their way into the game with some dazzling wing play from Louisa Necib and Elodie Thomis. With German goalkeeper Anna Sarholz having a night worthy of Manuel Almunia it was no surprise when the French took the lead midway when Sarholz had a morris dancer moment and passed up more than one chance to clear the ball before the powerful Wendie Renard fired home the loose ball.

The second half saw the Germans attempt to get back on level terms but their lack of shape in the midfield meant the French remained a threat particularly through the strong running of Lotta Schelin. The ebb and flow of the game was sometimes checked by the odd bad foul which referee Dagmar Dankova seemed loathe to chastise even when two German defenders paired up to body check a French player. This proved to be the breaking point as a vengeful challenge minutes later led to the only booking of the game.

As the final whistle drew near a German equaliser seemed a possibility but a wise French decision to substitute their tiring wingers led to their replacements Eugenie Le Sommer and Lara Dickenmann combining to score a goal worthy of any final, Sommer's cross from the right wing being mercilessly dispatched by Dickenmann to win the elegant trophy for the French.

The final whistle was the cue for delirious French celebrations as they became the first Gallic club team, male or female, to hold the title Champions De L'Europe. On receiving the cup from their counterpart Platini a fusillade of confetti exploded to our right and another great Craven Cottage European night was at an end, ironically on the day that it was revealed that the Cottagers themselves would again be playing in Europe, with their first game in June perhaps being the start of my 2011-12 season.

More Soviet than Samba

Disappointing night at the Emirates yesterday where much fancied Shaktar Donetsk flattered to deceive.  The Ukrainian club with its origins in the mining industry have pretensions to join the European elite, with a new stadium set to host the Euro 2012 final and a host of Brazilian imports.  Following their UEFA Cup win in 2009, they seem to have eclipsed their main rivals Dynamo Kiev, and with an impressive run of form behind them this game was touted as one to decide the group.

Unfortunately Donetsk's performance owed more to the inefficiencies of the old Soviet regime that used to govern the Ukraine than the silky soccer samba skills of most of their players.  They started with a clear plan to frustrate Arsenal with the outcome of playing football in and around their penalty area then knocking long balls into the right and left channels in an attempt to exploit the space behind the Gunners' full backs who had been sucked into the attack.  This was in contrast to their performance at Craven Cottage earlier in the year when they played Fulham off the park at times.

This may have worked as Arsenal found it hard to create an opening until the Donetsk goalkeeper dropped the ball on the line at the feet of Alex Song.  This forced Donetsk on the attack, and Arsenal took advantage to double their lead through Sami Nasri before half time.  In the second half the game was soon all over following a mysterious penalty converted by Cesc Fabregas, a virtuoso goal from the young player of the season so far Jack Wilshere, and a fifth from an offside looking Marouane Chamakh.  Only then did the Ukrainian side show glimpses of their flair, the end product being a fine goal from ex Gunner Eduardo.