With the South coast club having failed to win away from home all season long, it was perhaps the first time in six months that the majority of the home fans went into the game expecting a win, an expectation that our performance on the night never came close to fulfilling.
There could be a multitude of reasons as to why our game didn't reach the heights it has in recent weeks, perhaps the most obvious being the amount of games the team has played in such a short space of time. With Jon Williams rested, Sean Scannell starting from the bench, and Zaha looking tired and frustrated from about 20 minutes into the game, we didn't seem to have the attacking drive and flair which the fans have become so accustomed to this season.
In part this also determined the formation that Freedman started the game with, making it appear to take the shape of an orthodox 4-5-1 with Murray up top on his own, and Wilf or Ambrose just behind depending on the circumstances.
When Wilf and Scannell both start for us, the team still sets up in a 4-5-1 formation but with the aforementioned pair on either flank, giving us an abundance of natural width and the ability to quickly turn the formation into an attacking 4-3-3 whenever the moment presents itself. Last night, Jonny Parr did his best Sean Scannell impression, but due to his lack of attacking drive when he reaches the byline, our attacking play became lopsided, and relatively one dimensional, I have no doubts that, if Scannell and Williams had both started we would have won, sadly that can't and won't always be the case.
On a positive note, we broke the all-time clean sheet record with six consecutive shut-outs last night, a feat that can only be truly appreciated when you think back less than a year to when we had the single worst defensive record in the entire Football League, clearly Mr Popovic is putting something in the water.
Elsewhere, the EPPP debate rolls on, with Steve Parish having taken part in a "special live debate" on Sky Sports News on Monday evening, with West Ham talking head Tony Carr and Watford's Head of Youth, Nick Cox.
Without wanting to sound like an overly partisan club obsessive, it must be said that Steve came across extremely well throughout the programme, getting all of the relevant points listened to in a measured manner, whilst also managing to show displeasure when the need arose.
The fact is, that with Tony Carr clearly not entirely clued up on all the relevant points, and still holding delusions of grandeur as to his own clubs academy, and Cox only partially sympathising with Steve, in an attempt to limit the damage of his own clubs' bid for Grade 1 status, Parish was left alone to fight the battle for clubs with successful academies, a task he took to with aplomb.
There is a particularly good piece covering the whole debate in greater detail here.
Yesterday also saw news break that Bournemouth are looking to take Kieron Cadogan on loan for an as of yet undecided period with the potential for a permanent move should the scenario suit all parties. I can't say I greeted this news with a great deal of joy, not because I don't think it would be a good move for him, I believe it would do him the world of good. I simply worry that if he was to join the Cherries, they would see how talented a wide man he really is, thus encouraging them to really push for a permanent deal, and depriving us of another great player who has come through the youth system. It may be that with the squad as big as it is now, players need to be shuffled and in some cases, moved on, but, I would like to see Kieron stay with us for a while yet.
Finally I leave you with some quotes from our current favourite Australian (and new father to a bouncing baby boy), Mile Jedinak, who yesterday spoke about how he is gradually slotting in to the English game:
"I think it's normal, isn't it? A little bit of adaptation time, seeing how the team plays, I'm feeling comfortable in there, game-by-game, trying to help the team as much as I can. I've got a good understanding now with the players around me and that's helped me to settle in very quickly, I'm very thankful to them for helping me getting settled."
I will admit, I am not exactly Mile's biggest fan as of yet, I see him as a strange player, wandering around in the middle of the park without, it seems, a huge amount of purpose, however, his run in the first team has coincided with a long unbeaten run, and a string of five consecutive clean sheets, which, even I can acknowledge, is not a coincidence.
Dougie has been saying since the day he signed Mile, that he was a great asset to the team and that having him in the middle of the park would enable players such as Zaha and Williams to play their more naturally attacking games, a fact borne out by our recent good form, so regardless of my aesthetic quibbles with his style of running, I suppose it is only fair that I desist with my moans and let Dougie continue to lead the way.
Until next time.
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