Roy's Surrender!

United manager Roy Walker might as well have waved a white flag with his team selection at the Oval today. If today's selection was an example of what we can expect between now and the end of the season, then we may get ready for the first division. We picked a team with a lone striker, Kevin Kelbie upfront, with a five man midfield, minus Gary Haveron and we never made a match of it in the first half. Glentoran cantered through our defence at will and if it hadn't been for O'Neill in nets, who made three tremendous stops we could have been six down at halftime. Roy made two changes to his starting line-up of Tuesday night, out went Captain Gary Haveron and Archie and in came Anderson and the Cush. We have played the Glens twice this season and on both occasions we got into them and they didn't like it, today we gave them the freedom of the Park.

We were so bad we never even got a shot on target during the whole 90 minutes and the only player who got any shots at goal was the Cush. Albert and Ramsay, who had been rock solid on Tuesday night, were at sixes and sevens all day and I knew it was only a matter of time before they scored. We somehow survived the first 15 minutes, with O'Neill making a good stop and then being rescued by the post from a Hamilton shot. Then in the 17th minute Ramsay failed to close down Hamilton and he passed to the unmarked Gillespie who fired a low shot into the net. Surely I thought Roy would see the error of his ways and change the formation, but of course he didn't. Referee Adrian McCourt was his usual inefficient self allowing the home team to get away with late tackles while punishing us for 'winning' the ball.

O'Neill, who had given away a silly corner when he dithered with a back-pass, pulled off a smart save to keep the score at 1-0. He then made a gaffe when pushing a Hamilton shot round the post which appeared to be going wide. Albert went down injured at this point but refused treatment and the corner was taken. When the corner came over a home player fouled Ramsay who could only put the ball out for another corner, which the biased McCourt gave of course. When this corner came over our defence stood and watched as Glens forward Burrows headed them into a two goal lead. Worse still Albert had to come off with Archie taking his place, but no change to the negative formation. Locky who defies his years week in and week out, created an opening for himself at the other end, but his cross-cum-shot was clutched out of the air by the Glens keeper.

We actually had a wee spell of pressure on them at this stage but it was only a short reprieve and we failed to take advantage of the situation. The home team wrapped up the points in the 40th minute when Lee Colligan shepherded the ball over the goal-line when it was obvious one of our players got the last touch, a silly mistake. Then from the resultant corner Hamilton was left unmarked at the back post and he volleyed the ball into the net. We somehow managed to survive to halftime and I thought surely Roy will act, by taking off any two from Carson, Aid Watson and Anderson and see if we can salvage something from the game, maybe a bit of pride if nothing else.

Roy did make a substitution at the start of the 2nd half, bringing on Haveron, but to my utter surprise he took off Locky, who was probably the pick of our midfielder's. This made no discernible difference as far as I could see and even when he later took off Aid Watson and brought on McConnell it helped none at all. The 2nd half was summed up for me by one move when Kelbie and McConnell found themselves on a 'two to one' situation and all Nathan had to do was chase the pass down and square it to Kelbie. It was Nathan's ball all the way, but at the last minute he 'chickened out' and the chance was lost, I think I said a bad word.

This display by United wasn't anywhere near good enough and if they continue in this vein then relegation will become an all too real possibility. I know they had a tough match on Tuesday night, but there's going to be a lot of midweek games from now on and that excuse won't put any points on the board. The time has come Roy to put up, or if you can't stand the heat, to get out of the kitchen!


O'Neill (7), M. smith (6), Colligan (6), Ramsay (5), Alb Watson (5)(Sub: Archie 6),
Aid Watson (5)(Sub: McConnell 4), Carson (5), Anderson (5), Locky (6)(Sub: Haveron 6), Cushley (6), Kelbie (6)

Man of the match: Sean O'Neill