The Lounge

[Colum]

The BBC has exclusive access to all FA Cup games at the moment, so expect unless there’s a Don’s fan with an illegal live video feed, you’re stuffed. Guess you could always try iWollow if they cover cup games.

[liamwimbo]

OK. We need to take stock, especially in light of Dirty Dave’s comments a few days ago. Basically we are not very good at the moment, in fact we’re quite shit. But we scrapped our way to a win this morning, when everything pointed to a classic FA Cup upset. Comments on the FB page have become ridiculous. Never thought anything could be worse than the WUP forum but the polarisation on Facebook has become extreme. Yes, we may very well be relegated this season but we have survived worse than that. It’s easy to support a winning team, which we have been for most of the last 15 years. Much harder to keep the faith in tough times. I’m not saying that I am happy with the current situation. I just want all Wimbledon fans to pull together. The AFC Wimbledon International Facebook page is much more like that. Dons fans from all over the world supporting the club. And remember, we have New Plough Lane to look forward to.

[onyadon]

Little sign of turning the corner in the undistinguished last gasp 1-0 FA Cup win over Haringey Borough, 18th in seventh tier Isthmian League Premier Division, but a positive: £67k TV + £36k prize money + 1/3 of last night’s gate (2,710) to go with £10k for progressing in the Checkatrade Trophy. Don’t know if Neal Ardley will be around then but a little pot building for the January transfer window – and we desperately need a good window to have any hope of surviving the drop.

[Colum]

Talking to a Haringey fan before the game, I gave them more than a 50-50 chance of getting something from the game. How close I was. Playing the game away, on a 3G pitch and in terrible conditions, it was never going to be pretty.

We started brightly taking the game to them, but the old problems remain. We pass sideways WAY to much. Play is so often ponderous to the point of utter frustration. Even when a player moves into space, they’re not given the ball.

The only player who came out of last night with any sort of credit is Mitch Pinnock. On several occasions he took it upon himself to run at the defence, and it so nearly worked. He even got us the goal by taking a risk. Are the others afraid to shoot? It sometimes seems to.

Of course a lot can be said about Haringey. They played out of their skins, and their No.5 always seemed to be in the right place at the right time to tidy up. It was nothing fancy, but he did his job well. Even their keeper had a good game, and wasn’t afraid to come into a crowd of players to collect.

Perhaps fear is our worst enemy at the moment. Someone that mentality has to stop if we’ve any chance of getting out of this rut. The £100k will come in useful come January, but that transfer window is the last chance saloon for our season.

It’s clear last summer’s clear out hasn’t worked, so the question is what should the management do? There are so many problems all over the squad that it’s difficult to know where to start. From the keeper, full backs, central midfield, to up front, we need new impetus. That £100k is starting to look like diddly squat!

[Cape Cod Womble]

Didn’t see the Haringey game on Friday night. The pub I went to insisted on showing the Sheffield derby instead.

Well we got through and the money will come in handy but I’m wondering if any of it will go towards the January transfer window. As I said I think the club needs 200k to parachute NA, Cox and Bassey and I’m sure that as prudent as Erik and the Board are, they have not made any provision for paying off the coaching staff in their budget.

I went to my first Toon game on Sat at St James Park (I had already been there this year with Hull KR at Magic Weekend). Almost 50,000 rabid Geordies firing up a good game into a cracking atmosphere. The Toon’s keeper was former Esbjerg fB custodian Martin Dubravka who made some great saves. My how he has progressed.

On the Sunday morning having a lunchtime craft ale down by the Tyne I had a chat with DeAndre Yedlin’s grandparents who were over from Arizona. They are staying a few months in the north east following DeAndre play.

I had pre-booked the trip to the Toon otherwise I would have gone along to watch Grimsby on Saturday. And didn’t the mighty mighty Mariners do the job for our cause. Blundell Park on days like that has a unique feel to it. Much as I hate to say it, I feel certain that I can look forward to my first visit in the away end at BP next season. At least I will know the way to get there!

Well I’m going to give it another try this Saturday at Donny. Surely Hull Trains or Trans Pennine Express can’t stuff up a thirty mile trip (or can they)? This is a home game for me. No confidence that AFC will produce anything though.

[Cape Cod Womble]

Well my post was an hour too early.

NA has resigned and I’m a little surprised at that in the end. It will be interesting to hear his reasoning but he did state that if we lost to Haringey that he would probably go (or be sacked) and I suppose a replay would have meant the same thing. As is was, a 90+4 win on BBC was probably enough to tip the decision.

NA is a good guy, a good player at WFC (not a legend as some say) and got us promoted but the writing was on the wall last season and now AFC is in a tail spin that looks very unlikely to get out of.

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