No Logic!

It gets harder every week to try and write something positive about United’s attempts to play the game we call football. Admittedly they got off to the worst possible start today, losing Darren Murphy after barely two minutes to a serious head injury, by some strange quirk not mentioned in any of the two reports on radio Ulster’s Sports Sound show, nor on the Teletext report on B.B.C. T V either. One has to assume that players being carried off are no longer thought newsworthy enough to gain a mention. Kevin Kelbie was restored to the United front line alongside young Randal Reid, at the expense of Austen Friel, who didn’t even get a place on the bench. Sky Blue Sport’s worst fears were confirmed when that misfit, Stuarty King, got a place on the bench and in fact came on for the injured Darren Murphy two minutes into the game. The United defence were unable to clear their lines and kept playing themselves into trouble, with short passes which went astray and were indebted on several occasions to Boydie for rescuing them with last minute clearances. Referee Burns did them no favours by ignoring a couple of blatant fouls, which was just the start of his inept refereeing display. In a rare United attack Scatesy, who otherwise had a ‘stinker’, managed to get the ball through to Randal Reid, but the young striker went for the obvious shot and former United keeper Dwayne Nelson made a good save low down to his left. At the other end another former United player, Rory Hamill, jinked his way past our hesitant defence and set up their young striker McAllister, luckily for the United defence he completely miskicked and the ball was cleared. At the other end United’s best forward, Mark Picking, forced Nelson to make a good save. United won a free kick when home defender Fitzpatrick ‘cleaned’ Picking, but the cross was easily gathered by Nelson. Dungannon were guilty of casual play at the back and Reid came within an inch of intercepting one cross-field ball. The young striker missed a glorious chance to give his team the lead, when he got his head to a Picking cross, but headed wide when at worst he should’ve at least been on target. United were coming more into the game at this stage and I was hopeful for a better second half.

Five minutes after the break we almost snatched the lead when Picking burst through but his shot clipped the top of the crossbar, with Nelson well beaten. The home team put the United defence under more pressure and we had a let off when the ball was driven against the post with Murphy well beaten. Murphy then spilled a simple shot but managed to recover the ball, with the home forwards closing in. As Dungannon lived dangerously once more playing the ball across their back four, Picking nipped between the last two defenders and as he sped goalwards he was ‘cleaned’ by central defender Fitzpatrick. With a direct run on goal this offence carries a mandatory sending off, but referee Burns merely flourished a yellow card. Stuarty King took the resultant free kick, but shot it over the bar. Why our manager allows this man to take free kicks is a mystery to me, because I can’t remember us scoring from one during his time at the Showgrounds. Dungannon snatched a dramatic goal in the 81^st minute and its one which will haunt United midfielder Aiden Watson for a day or two. There seemed little danger as the young midfielder was shepherding the ball over the goal-line, but he was dispossessed and the ball screwed in from a tight angle by home forward McCabe. Two minutes later Randal Reid was viciously scythed down by Fitzpatrick, but referee Burns took no action against him. United manager Tommy Wright took Randal off and brought on Darren Fitzgerald, but why did he have to sacrifice a striker in order to bring one on, could he not have taken off the ineffective Scatesy or King, but then again that would be too logical. A minute later Picking and Callaghan combined up the right flank and as the United fullback went flying through, defender Fitzpatrick, given ‘carte blanche’ by the referee, maliciously scythed the fullback to the ground. The referee flourished a second yellow card to the Dungannon Captain, but it was too little too late, in my opinion. Callaghan had to be helped off the pitch, replaced by Gareth McConaghie. United attempted to mount a last ditch attack, even pushing Captain Albert Watson into a forward role, but they even got this wrong. Albert was left wide on the right, with Kelbie in the middle and Fitzy on the left. Surely it would have been wiser to have pushed Albert up front with Kelbie on the left and Fitzy on the right, but then again I’m thinking logically. In any case play was mainly at the other end of the pitch as the home team used their heads and endeavoured to keep the ball down there for most of the remaining normal time and the surprisingly short injury time of 4 minutes. Still as I’ve said many times before, I don’t think we could’ve scored if we’d have played all night, it’s sure going to be a long hard old winter, unless there’s a massive turnaround, but it better be quick!

Murphy 6 Aid Watson 6 MoM: Boydie

Callaghan 5 Reid 6

Boydie 7 Kelbie 6

Scatesy 5 Murphy 7 Referee: B. Burns 2

Alb Watson 6 1^st Sub: King 5

Haveron 6 2^nd Sub: Fitzy 6

Picking 7 3^rd Sub: McConaghie 6