Thursday 13 August 2009

Dunfermline v Inverness

Finally the season has began and it couldnt have been a better start.

First of all I was going to wait to include photos but I dont think that is going to happen this week so I will just update without them.

Thankfully it was not going to be such a long journey that I needed to get up a some silly time in the morning but I was ready to leave at 10:15 am. Left earlier than I needed to becuase I knew there was going to be some major delays because of roadworks but I didnt really know how long it would be.

This was my first time driving down the A9 and I have now only realised that it is a crappy road and it needs to be dual carriage way. My little 1.2 litre Polo served me well and got me past the stupid bloddy caravans. In the roadworks out side Perth I got stuck for just over an hour which made me really glad I left as early as I did. I stopped in Perth for 5 minutes which gave me 2 hours until the 3 pm Kick off. I blitzed my way down the M90 to Dunfermline at 80 mph (no I mean 70 mph) and got to the ground within 45 mins and was in the ground by 10 past 2. There were a few Caley fans milling about but I never really expected a bug turn out so I was greatly surprised when the away section was looking rather full at 3 o'clock. (It might not have been so full but you can never really tell when you are in there yourself).

The away fans (me I suppose) were brilliant I cant remember being at a Caley gamer were we made such a racket right from the off. There was not a lot to be sad about really. We were looking forward to the season were we should be challenging for the title so optimism was high. No arguements could be made with the managers (Teryy Butcher) starting 11:

GK - Ryan Esson
RB - David Proctor (In for the suspended Ross Tokley)
LB - Lionel Djebi Zadi (I have taken about 10 minutes to try and spell his name)
CB - Narius Bulvitis
CB - Grant Munro (Captain
RM - Dougie Imrie
LM - Robert Eagle
CM - Lee Cox
CM - Daniel Stratford
ST - Dani Sanchez
ST - Adam Rooney

The start of the match belonged to Caley as well. We were knocking the ball about very well with lots of short quick passing and it looked like it was going to be a comfortable afternoon with Dunfermline not posing a threat and really struggling to keep a hold of the ball. That first chance of the match fell to Adam Rooney. He was played clean through on goal and from only 10 yards out managed to somehow put the ball well wide of the post. The keeper had come out to close him down but still for me that is not a good enough excuse. The shot had to at least hit the target. The next opportunity also came Inverness' way. This time Lee Cox shooting well over the bar after a corner was cleared to the edge of the box.

Slowly but surely the Pars were starting to work their way into the game. Poor passing from ICT and hard work from the home side meant that they were starting to get more of the ball and with that came chances. Most of them were from outside the box so they was no really scares untill a free kick was swung in on the far side of the pitch. Proctor and Djeb Zadi (I will call him Lionel from now on. It is much easier) made a complete hash of trying to clear and one of Dunfermlines midfielders had a clear chance to get the ball on target. It would have been 1-0 to the hosts if it was not down to Grant Munro throwing himself infront of the ball and knocking it over the bar for a corner kick. It could have went any where but luck was on our side as in the end it went harmlessly over.

Just before Half Time, Rooney had another chance. It was a scrap in the right hand side of the penalty area and Imrie eventually managed to get a low cross in. This took a deflection and the ball was waiting to be hit from 6 yards out with only the keeper to beat. Sadly for Caley it was Adam Rooney with the best chance of getting on the end of it and he has the reactions of a snail so the chance was gone.

Half Time 0-0

Verdict - Caley have probably just edged it definetly having the better chances but just not been able to put them away

Fan Watch - Our set of fans have been brilliant so far. Singing for the majority of the 45 minutes. It makes a nice change from last season where the atmosphere has never been brilliant so on that front it has been brilliant. I went off to get a Capri Sun to help try and get my throat to last the next 45 mins.

Pie Watch - Lets be honest you all want to know. We always want to know what the Pies are like. So Dunfermline pies. Pretty bogging to be fair. I only ate half of it. The pastry was soggy and just fell apart when I tried to tuck into it. I hope that has not set the standard for the season. I would rate it a 4/10. That might go up or down as I havei nothing to really compare it against for how bad it was but for how good it was nothing compared to a Killie Pie.

Second Half

Enough about pies and fans you probably dont care. The second 45 mins was not the best for Caley. Right up untill the 90th minute we only had one shot that really tested the goalkeeper and that was a strike from Dougie Imrie from 25 yards.

The half was all about the home side. They dominated and deserved to be leading but they could just not break through. They must have had 8 or 9 shots from outside the area but only 2 ever made it on target. The hit the post with 8 minutes to go and that is as close as they came. I dont know wheather it was solid defending or Dunfermline had no creativity but all shots came from outside the area and I was never too worried about them scoring. Yes they dominated the game but never was I really really nervous and desperate for the game to end. Both shots on target were comfortable for Esson. To be fair they did hit the post and that could have easily went in but it was not to be their day in front of goal.

It looked like the game was going to end 0-0 a result that every away fan, player and staff member would bite your hands off for as we had not been great in this half. Our passing game that had looked so good in the first half had dissapeared and we could not hold onto the ball. With about 15 minutes to go Dougie Imrie came off Injured. Seemed to be a knee problem and we still dont know the full extent of the injury but it has been mentioned that he could be out for up to 6 months. I really hope not. Johnny Hayes was the man to replace him. A new boy who we really did not know what to expect from him. He did look like a very good player. He is small and pacey and will chase a lost cause. Looks like he could be a great winger for us throughout the season so watch this space......

Back to the action now and in the 92nd mintue Caley were starting to get back into the game and a cross from the left was cleared away by the Dunfermline defence. It was a poor clearance and only went to the edge of the box where Lee Cox was waiting to pounce. And he did poucne. He pounced like a mongoose. He watched the box come down right onto the side of his right foot and placed a majestic volley into the bottom left hand corner and sent the players and mostly the away fans wild. The celebrations stopped just in time to hear the final whistle so the celebrations started again. The home fans, home players and eventually the Caley team we sent to the dressing room with chants of "We all love Cox" and "We are going Up" ringing in their ears. It was a magnificant way to win the match and left no time for Dunfermline to come back. Just as well really as we probably wouldnt have held on if they did have the time.

Full Time Dunfermline 0 Inverness 1

Lee Cox 90+2'

Reaction - Well we may not have played very well in the second half but we got the 3 points and that is all we wanted. The signs in the first half looked good and shows we can play some decent football and then in the second half it showed that our defence is going to be incredibly strong and we wont concede many goals which is a massive bonus to have in any division and if we continue like that we should be there or there abouts at the end of the season

Player Review:

Ryan Esson - Didnt have to much to do but when he was called into action he looked very solid and will be a very important player for us this year

David Proctor - He made one good tackle in the first half but apart from that he is nothing special. Was taken apart by the Left Winger and will not be in the team when Ross Tokely comes back from suspension

Djebi Zadi - Fans Hero. You will only understand once you watch him play. He is a big brut of a man and would probably win if he was fighting a bulldoser. Aboslute hero and almost scored a brilliant goal. Makes a mess of a clearance and makes a few wild tackles but it was a good game.

Grant Munro - As had some criticsm of late but did really well. Would have been Man of the Match if it was not for Lee Cox's last mintue winner.

Narius Bulvitis - This was his second game for the club and he looked ok. Won a lot of headers but may need to work on his tackling for future games. Should be a good signing

Dougie Imrie - By far our star player but he looked like he didnt want to be playing. Didnt have a good game and eventually came off injured, He will be a massive player for us if he is not injured for too long and actually can be bothered.

Robert Eagle - Another new signing and after watching him in the Cup game last week I thought he looked very good but today I was not so impressed. Did not look strong enough and some of his passing was terrible. For a winger needs to get to the byline more as when he does I think he will put a decent cross in.

Lee Cox - Well he scored the winner so he will obviously be praised but the goal aside he looks like a brilliant player. He breaks up the play very well and loves a tackle. He could get sent off a few times this season but he will be key to promotion. He can pass as well and if he keeps chipping in with a few goals we have made one hell of a signing this summer

Daniel Stratford - Looks ok. Another new player. Is not scared to talk to the players if something is going wrong which is what you need. Needs to play a few more games untill I can really see if he is going to be a decent player for us

Dani Sanchez - Yet again a new player. Plays just in the hole between Midfield and Attack. Some nice touches and passes and I get the feeling he loves to set players up for goals. One thing I have noticed though is when the ball is crossed in he seems reluctent to make a run towards the 6 yard box. If he could do that he will score 5 to 10 more goals than he will this year. He will score anyway but he is more of a assister than a goalscorer

Adam Rooney - So if Dani Sanchez is going to set up the goals you would say Rooney needs to score the goals. Well he wont do it. He is not strong enough to play as a target man and he has not pace. To add to that from what I have seen today he cant finish so I dont think he should be playing. On a positive note. Today up front on his own he didnt do a bad job considering he is not built to play up on his own but I dont think he will fit into the team and with Richie Foran back now Rooney should be on the bench

Subs

Roy McBain - Experienced player and really changed the game when he came on for Eagle. Him and Hayes made a good impact

Johnny Hayes - Looks a very good tricky player. New signing and should do well for us

Shane Sutherland - Young local striker and looks like he could become a key player for us. He replaced Dani Sanchez and made a good powerful run through the middle of the pitch. The only way he was stopped was by getting fouled

Other Results:

Dundee 1-0 Morton
Ross County 2-1 Airdrie
Ayr 1-1 Partick Thistle
Queen of the South 1-1 Raith Rovers

As you may notice an lack of Livingston. They have been demoted to division 3 and Airdrie will take their place in Division 1

Table:
PL Won Drawn Lost GD Points
1) Inverness CT 1 1 0 0 +1 3
2) Dundee 1 1 0 0 +1 3
3) Ross County 1 1 0 0 +1 3
4) Ayr 1 0 1 0 0 1
5) Partick Thistle 1 0 1 0 0 1
6) Queens 1 0 1 0 0 1
7) Raith Rovers 1 0 1 0 0 1
8) Airdrie 1 0 0 1 -1 0
9) Morton 1 0 0 1 -1 0
10) Dunfermline 1 0 0 1 -1 0

Any of the top 3 could actually be top but since Im a Caley fan I am going to put us at the summit.

Next Week:

Inverness v Ayr
Airdrie v Queens
Morton v Dunfermline
Partick Thislt v Ross County
Raith v Dundee

So thanks for readin and I hope you enjoyed it. Tune in next week for Ayr Untited at home

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