Kettering

[manurgrate]

That's all you need when you are struggling, " the referee from hell". It was going to be hard enough to beat a more than useful Kettering side with 11 men let alone with 10 for an hour. I thought that Alex was very unjustly sent off for a couple of slightly mistimed challenges. It seemed that after that the ref had it in for us and gave us absolutely  nothing. He only seemed to send off their 9 at the death after considerable pressure from Tangerine fans on the clubhouse side.

 

Because the ref was so poor we allowed ourselves to lose our composure at times, which was natural but unhelpful as it allowed Kettering to control the game for most of the match. We did create a few chances ourselves and the visitors keeper and defenders looked vulnerable when put under pressure.

 

After defending very well for an hour, there were a couple of errors that led to the first goal, Macca having no chance from a low well struck shot that went in via the post.

 

Whilst it was 1-0 we were still well in the game and gave their defence some anxious moments before Kettering wrapped up the match with a good strike. However a Kettering player who was clearly interfering with play, swung his foot at the shot but missed, but of course, in keeping with  the " one eyed" refereeing of the rest of the match, the goal stood.

 

I am not one to go on about referees that much as they have a very difficult job but yesterday's ref was a shocker and arguably cost us the match.

[GordonMills]

I was in the area yesterday and went along to the game more or less by chance. 

I'm an ex-Kettering Town fan. I was a ST holder, but more or less stopped going when the Pakistani clown and his circus took over the asylum. I'm not keen on having Philistine militias (I don't like using the "T-word") and their associates promoted on my team's kit. The long-term result was inevitable. 

I hadn't seen a Kettering Town game since 2007 and was - perhaps still am - in the "Lump of lead in the ear & start again as an AFC at Step 7 would be the kindest thing to do" camp. Now that the club's moved back to the town or thereabouts I'm not quite so sure.

I have watched a fair few Isthmian and Southern games over recent years. Including watching Ashford on several occasions in the Isthmian Premier Division.

First thing to say about yesterday was how shockingly bad both teams were. I know there's a division gap, but the likes of Lowestoft, Wealdstone, Bognor, Maidstone, Stourbridge, Hemel or Chesham would take either side apart. I wouldn't consider anything less than a 3-goal margin in a correct score bet.

Looking at the players on the Kettering team, I have to wonder if lessons have been learned. How many away fans travelled yesterday? Fifty? Not quite the 1,400 that went to Tiverton and prayed on on final day in 2002. That's just about a mid-table Southern Premier team they've got. Who's paying for them? They should not be losing twice as many games as they're winning. They should be contending near the top. One up much of the time, in spite of the nominal 4-4-2. Nobody but the striker - usually singular - making a run ahead of the man in possession when the ball was being brought out. All eleven back at every Ashford corner or dangerous freekick. Two and a half back at Kettering's own corners, even though Ashford left just one up. 

Ashford's eleven looks lower mid-table. Certainly no Byron Harrisons around.

The ref made his intentions clear early. The booking of Brad Piercewright - who may have played in that Tiverton game - after two minutes was arguably a clearer-cut yellow card than the three Ashford yellows that quickly followed but there are refs who would've let all four go with just a lecture.

Honestly can't see how anyone can complain about Duffy being sent off. His first yellow was dubious. I'm pretty sure it was Duffy who, within a few minutes of that booking, went to ground following an innocuous aerial challenge, in which there was minimal contact, and incredibly picked up the ball before the whistle went. There was nothing like a foul there. No footballer does that. At least not on a team with a competent coach, which I'm sure Paul Burgess is. Deliberate handball. I don't know if it was a ploy to intimidate/pressurize the ref, but it was stupid. The ref let it go. I was walking around by the stand as Duffy made the challenge that saw him march. He caught his opponent two-thirds of the way up the shinpad and ran his boot down the bloke's tibia. Mistimed? Yes. Not a lot of force there and wasn't going to do any damage, but the linesman was right next to me and flagged like a maniac before the ref blew. It was high with the studs up.

Your bench has got problems in the way they chirp at officials all the time. Paul Burgess not primarily responsible. There are differences between subtly exerting pressure in Alex Ferguson style, being a relatively harmless cartoon clown a la George Borg... and being an over the top, whingeing, one-eyed, psychotic pain-in-the-butt. The latter is usually counterproductive - especially if it transfers itself to kids playing in the first team, which it appears to have done. That's got to be stopped. 

Pedantic though the ref was, I thought the officials got most of the big decisions right, though I was in line and thought Kettering #9 Jake Newman was marginally offside when going through one-on-one with McCarthy and being correctly booked for diving.

Fans blaming officials for defeats is par for the course. When coaching staff start doing it - and believing it - a club's in trouble. It looked to me as though the Ashford bench believed it yesterday.

As with Uxbridge, if the ground wasn't so bloody far from a station/pub/civilisation, I'd go occasionally.

Sadly, I can't see me returning to Kettering in the near future. 

[fatboyatmfc]

Thank you for the interesting comments Gordon.

I have a pair of the best Tangerine tinted specs but I found the referee totally out of his depth. After the game he said that he couldn't control a game unless he delbt out the cards! I think that comment says a lot about his ability.

I thought that we showed our naivity and Kettering used that to their full advantage. Going down in a heap at the slightest contact, 3 or 4 players screaming at the ref at every challenge and kicking the ball at players on free kicks in an attempt to get them carded. Sadly the ref bought every trick in the book and they succeeded. After a challenge on Ketterings 7 he admitted to our player that he had left his foot in to create a foul and a yellow card! Nice! We are a young and naive side but I would much prefer to be that than be overpaying 25 year old mercenaries who still need to cheat their way to points. Mind you it's probably all immaterial anyway when the judge has his say soon.

[fatboyatmfc]

Oh by the way , the next time you fancy coming to The RPS, Gordon , give us a shout in advance on here and someone can meet you at the station and take you to the ground.