Our former manager used to say, “Judge me after 10 games.” Since Paul Wotton has now managed for ten games, I’m going to do just that!
Enfield’s superb counterattack goal within the first five minutes gave them the lead, and Paul Wotton’s tenure couldn’t have started any worse. However, United dominated the majority of the match and Matt Carson quickly scored an equaliser. In actuality, it might have ended up 3 or 4. Brad Ash sealed the win with a strong header.
Every season, the yellow army turns out in force for the first away game. This year, about 500 fans travelled from outside the area to take advantage of the unsegregated hospitality. Unfortunately, they were in for a very frustrating first half from United. Farnborough had a chance to score from the spot in the first half thanks to a bad tackle by Finn Tonks, and they duly took it. Even though United played better in the second half, we were unable to find an equaliser and were defeated.
In this league, United matches are always highly anticipated. They were supported by raucous supporters, and Cody Cooke didn’t take long to return to haunt his previous employers. A cracking header in the second half from Ed Palmer put United into the driving seat, and although Bath got a goal back in the 78th min, United saw the game out for all three points. This felt like a big win because we hadn’t triumphed there in our previous few trips, and the players and management relished their moment in front of the away end at the conclusion of the game.
Arriving at Plainmoor to round out a challenging week for the Yellows were the league favourites. Without really creating a chance, Marc White’s team controlled the majority of the ball as they attacked us. Ed Palmer and Hasani had the best opportunities of the first half, and it was unfortunate that we were scoreless at the break. That quickly changed, though, as Hasani scored the goal of the month to make it 1-0 in the second half! Dorking tried hard but was unable to break through, missing a header that would have won the game in the last act. A huge victory for United!
Two days later, the Yellow Army was heading to Chesham. Chesham’s 1-0 lead was facilitated by a mistake made by Hamon, and it appeared that United would once again put up a subpar first half away from home. That was, that is, until a Chesham defender handled on the goal-line just before halftime to stop Fin Tonks’ goal-bound attempt. Cody Cooke duly dispatched the yellows, earning a red card and a penalty. Chesham settled in and quickly took a 2-1 lead, once more capitalising on defensive lapses. Five minutes later, a 20-yard goal from Dan Hayfield levelled the score. However, in the 96th minute, Brad Ash’s excellent cross from Dean Moxey gave United the victory.
Aveley’s outstanding rearguard action earned them a great point on the road. Even though United possessed the bulk of the ball, they occasionally overplayed it rather than being straightforward and challenging an Aveley team that was well-organised. Matt Carson looped a cross-come-shot over to the back post to put us 1-0 up on the stroke of half time. Sadly, Aveley missed their one and only opportunity of the game—a 25-yard free kick that went past Hamon. United definitely lost two points as they puffed and puff but were unable to find a winner.
Everything that Aveley and Chesham lacked was present in this performance. United got off to a brisk start, attacking nonstop and winning 3-0 in just 26 minutes. Although there were many more goals that could have been scored, Chippenham won the game with a strong second half showing and went back up the M5.
After a long throw, Cody Cooke put the ball in the net, but the referee incorrectly called him offside, denying United a goal in the first half. That would have changed the course of the match, but thanks to a brilliant save by Rhys Lovett, United would still hit the post and the bar. It was starting to feel like “one of those days,” so it was expected that Welling would score a goal on the other end. Welling broke and secured a second to end the game and send another healthy yellow following home empty-handed despite Torquay’s attempts to equalise.
A completely terrible performance; Wotton assured us that the boys would always give it their all when they put on the shirt, but this game was the lone exception! The Mitres completely outplayed us and earned their victory and advance to the next round, seemingly thinking they could simply show up and win the game. A truly gut-wrenching performance that was entirely unexpected!
a chance to recover from the setback of the previous week, but it started slowly once more and had a pretty unmemorable first half. After a while, United found their first goal of the year when Ben Seymour executed a hilarious one-two with the St. Albans defender. But in just five minutes, Hamon, who actually seemed like he should have performed better, was defeated by Zane Banton, who unleashed a 25-yard bomb. As both teams battled for the victory, there was still a lot of drama in the game. Banton suddenly threw an elbow at Ed Palmer as he was vying for a header, breaking Ed’s eye socket. For the final thirty minutes, Red Card and United were ahead by one man. Several balls into the box went begging and then it was time for another referee howler as he and his linesman failed to award the most stonewall of stonewall penalties you will see on Omar Mussa in the dying minutes. Another 2 points seemingly dropped.
Prior to writing this piece, I would have given the season a 6.5 out of 10, with lots of space for growth. This is supported by the performance ratings I’ve assigned to the games thus far, but considering how quickly this squad was assembled, I’m confident we will improve. Paul Wotton’s team is off to a good start; they are in fifth place, four points behind the leaders, and only a few officiating calls separate them from a five-point lead. There are many reasons for optimism at TQ1, particularly if we can bring in a few loanees!
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