SHEFFIELD UNITED 1-1 NOTTS COUNTY
KITSON '51 L HUGHES '76
As with our trip to Milton Keynes a couple of weeks ago, yesterday's short meander North to visit Bramall Lane felt like it could be something of a season defining moment. Last season, more than anything else, it was our constant inability to compete with the top teams in the league, particularly physically, that had seen Notts miss out on the play-offs on the final day, something alluded to by Keith Curle in his pre-match notes for this one. Even towards the end of the season, when the division's form team, Notts were comprehensively bullied and beaten by both Sheffield sides. The initial signs at Milton Keynes this season were better, for long periods of the game the Magpies outdid Karl Robinson's side at their own passing game, but a trip to Bramall Lane was always going to be a different test. The Blades have started the season in a reasonable fashion, sitting unbeaten but hampered by the sheer amount of draws they've picked up, although victory at Yeovil last week gave them a chance to catch Notts up with victory in this one.
On our last away game, I absolutely panned Milton Keynes and the Stadium:MK, but I have to say that Bramall Lane is fantastic. A proper football ground, imposing and oozing character, it's definitely one of the best away trips in the division. Obviously the shambolic attempts at organisation of the away fans didn't help - something has clearly gone wrong when you've got hundreds of fans still queueing at 3:15pm, not even to get into the ground, but to get a ticket to then let them get into the ground. I felt sorry for the two hardy souls working in the ticket office, but you'd have thought that someone may have realised that they maybe needed a bit of support. Anyway, things were set up for an entertaining afternoon. Notts made one change to the side that beat Portsmouth last weekend, with Jamal Campbell-Ryce returning to the side to replace the somewhat unfortunate Joss Labadie, whilst United's side boasted former Premier League forward Dave Kitson and Michael Doyle, who has just returned to the club.
United started brightest and could've gone ahead earlier on, Doyle having the first effort from 25 yards after Notts had cheaply given the ball away, but he was off balance and never looked likely to test Bialkowski. The pressure kept coming, with Notts certainly not helping themselves by giving the ball constantly back to their hosts with lazy passes in the centre, and Ryan Flynn brought the best out of Notts' Polish 'keeper. The former Falkirk winger cut inside Julian Kelly from the left and hit a firm low shot that seemed to be flying in, but Bialkowski did brilliantly to beat it away with his left hand. Notts still didn't learn their lesson though, with Gary Liddle this time hopelessly caught in possession by Nick Blackman, who released Leicester loanee Paul Gallagher. The winger never looked confident though and Bialkowski, in the end, made a pretty comfortable save after the Scot had taken the ball too close to goal.
After a trying opening quarter of an hour, Notts suddenly worked their way into the game by putting together the best passing move of the match thus far. Neal Bishop, Carl Regan and Alan Judge were all involved in the build up, before Yoann Arquin cut out onto the left and bent in a cross that Jeff Hughes headed narrowly wide. Notts' leading scorer from last season really should've found the net, but it was a brighter point for Notts after United's early pressure. Maguire headed over from a corner whilst well marshalled at the far post by Bishop, but Notts were enjoying their best spell of the half and should've gone ahead after another neat passing move released Kelly down the right. His cross was just diverted away from Zoko but fell kindly for Judge, who just couldn't bring the ball under control and finish past Mark Howard. Bialkowski had to be alert shortly afterwards to make a fairly routine save from Blackman, before Kitson finally found his way into the referee's notebook for a late challenge on Judge.
Which brings me onto my next point - Notts were really being bullied by United's big, strong and agricultural forward line. That Kitson hadn't already been booked for pulling and hacking was a mystery, but the greater concern was that Leacock and Liddle looked genuinely troubled by a front line for the first time this season, with Blackman and Kitson's physical presence giving them the chance to latch onto all of United's direct passing. Danny Wilson's side have evolved from last season, without a doubt, changing their style to accommodate for the loss of the likes of Ched Evans, Lee Williamson and Stephen Quinn. Where as, at Meadow Lane last season, their physical approach was tempered by a flowing style of football, yesterday they were basically a footballing battering ram. It worked though, without doubt - Blackman and Kitson won everything knocked forward whether it was towards their head, chest or feet. The last chance of the half came after this led to a dubiously awarded free kick on the right, which was pulled back to Gallagher. Somehow his scuffed shot was deflected over the bar Bishop, who was basically lying on the goalline.
Having survived plenty of scares in the first half, Notts finally fell behind just after the restart, having not learned the lessons of the first half. A long ball from the half way line was aimed towards Blackman, who battled his way past Liddle to bring it down and smash against the angle of bar and post - the ball was cleared but only to a United player on the half way line, who launched forward another direct pass that found Blackman, only for the former Blackburn man to be thwarted by Bialkowski. Notts failed to regroup though and, finally, Flynn's clipped cross was headed home by the unmarked Kitson. There could be no complaints, really, Notts had never really got to grips with United's physicality upfront and the Blades had created enough to warrant the lead, even if much of it had come from Notts' own mistakes.
United continued putting pressure on but struggled to really create anything else - Kitson appealing for a penalty as he wrestled his man to the ground at the far post. The former Stoke and Reading forward was also incredibly lucky to stay on the pitch after a studs up lunge on Judge somehow didn't lead to a second yellow card. Danny Wilson seemed to notice this, taking him off almost immediately to be replaced by Chris Porter, another physically imposing centre forward. For Notts, Julian Kelly had limped off to be replaced by Joss Labadie whilst Lee Hughes had come on to replace Francois Zoko. Hughes was struggling to get into the game, however, which perhaps should've been a warning sign of what was to come. Notts were starting to put a bit of pressure on the home defence as they skipped away down the right and Campbell-Ryce's deflected cross found Zoko, whose header from inside the six yard box was brilliantly turned over the bar by Howard. Another corner came when Tony McMahon inexplicably sliced a loose ball behind his own goal - a bizarre error that was to prove fatal for the Blades. United didn't deal with Judge's ball in and it fell to Labadie, whose looping header clipped the bar before Jeff Hughes slammed the ball goalwards. It seemed to be going in anyway, but Lee Hughes made sure on the line to give Notts a chance of an undeserved and unlikely point.
United were forced to press for a winger again, Maguire heading home when everyone else had stopped for an offside flag, whilst Manchester United loanee John Cofie was thrown on in a final throw of the dice. In five minutes of added time they peppered the Notts area with missile after missile from deep, and it continue to cause problems, as Flynn and Blackman both had efforts off target. Judge was also unlucky not to see a second yellow for a foul as United tried to break after a rare Notts attack. The visitors survived though for what has to go down as a superb point after just about the least fluent performance of the season. Notts never really got their passing game going yesterday - particularly in defence and midfield where almost everyone was uncharacteristically making basic errors in possession which, without Bialkowski, would certainly have presented United with another goal or two. To take a point at a side who certainly showed enough to prove that they'll be up there at the end of the season is a massive positive though. With every week that goes by Notts seem to show another side of their game that, added together, mean that anything other than a shot at promotion would be a disappointment this season.