The letter 'B' it seems was to be the dominating factor in this match, Bradford (aka the Bantams) being the visitors to London Road on a wet and blustery pre-Christmas Saturday. With top scorer Nakhi Wells playing without his strike partner Hanson his job of trying to lead the Bantams to a first ever League win in Peterborough was made even more difficult when Phil Parkinson opted for a 5 - 4 - 1 formation in an attempt to stifle the Posh attack. Wells was easily bossed by the Posh's 'BB' boys (Bostwick and Brisley) with chances few and far between for either team in a rather dour first 20 minutes. The swirling wind and constant drizzle, did little to aid Posh in their attempt to keep the ball on the ground, passes frequently over-hit or players guilty of poor ball control. Posh looked nervous and hesitant against a big and strong Bradford side (given our fairly recent run of poor form I was not all that surprised). I think most people in the ground were pleasantly surprised when Posh gradually began to get into a rhythm and started to push forward. Posh were awarded a corner on the left of what used to be the Moyes Terrace. The ball was cleared to Kgosi Ntlhe, stood all alone in acres of space about 35 yards from the goal. The Bradford defence was immobile as, like most of us in the ground, they thought he would chip the ball back into the crowded penalty area. He did not, opting instead to shoot, a delightful, swerving, dipping shot finding the top corner of the Bradford goal giving McLaughlan no chance. Until that moment all the noise had come from the travelling fans. Suddenly the home fans woke up and you could almost feel the sense of relief and see the confidence grow in the players. Posh moved up a gear and and the lumbering Bradford defenders were having a hard time as the boys in blue surged forward in search of a second goal. It was not long in coming, Francis Jeffers fed the ball to Britt who was about 10 yards out in the centre of the goal. With 2 Defenders in close attention he still had a lot to do, a jink one way then a swift turn, wrong-footing the defenders and creating enough space for the shot, he slammed the ball past the Bradford keeper. Posh should have been out of sight by half-time, at least 2 clear cut chances being spurned as the ball was moved around the pitch at pace, rather than the ponderous 'sideways and backwards' passing that had been so painful to watch. Even Joe Newell had a decent game, overcoming his early errors to show some of the Joe Newell I had watched and admired whilst he was in the Youth team. In fact all 3 of the former Youth team players, Newell, Anderson and Ntlhe played their part in this win. Unsurprisingly, with his game plan in tatters, Phil Parkinson opted to switch to 4 4 2 and make changes in personnel, with Bradford immediately posing much more of threat, especially on their Left flank, giving Mark Little a torrid time, though without much success until, a seemingly tame shot from veteran striker Andy Gray, straight at Bobby Olejnik, somehow contrived to slip through the keeper's hands and legs to roll into the net. This soft goal rejuvenated Bradford and put Posh under needless pressure as the visitors pushed forward in numbers searching for an equaliser, winning a succession of corners. Bradford sacrificed a Defender in the latter stages, opting to play 3 4 3 as they went on the attack once more. This tactic almost back-fired near the end of the match with Posh having 4 clear-cut chances to finally put the game beyond Bradford, most notable of the misses - Britt missing an open goal from 5 yards. Finally the Referee blew the whistle to end the contest, much to the relief of the home fans. We had the 3 points in the bag, it should have been a lot easier but the fight and desire is returning, along with the attacking football. The crowd was happy for a change, people were smiling as they left the ground, something I had not witnessed for some time, perhaps our promotion push is now firmly back on course. I shall be travelling to Sixfields on Boxing Day in anticipation rather than trepidation, a good performance against Coventry and another win would make this a very happy Christmas. With around 1300 tickets already sold the Away fans could well outnumber the 'Home' fans!
OPP - good write up fella. As for outnumbering the home fans against Coventry mate, most will all be standing up on the hill overlooking the ground. Also if you hide your colours there is a pub up there as well...if you want to avoid the overpriced TGI's
Thanks for the comments. brb - The price of beer is immaterial to me as I will not be drinking (the magnetic resonance emitted by my car keys keeps alcohol firmly at bay) A possible headline for the Southampton match: 'Slick Saints sink Spurs' or perhaps 'Saints spurred to victory'
