Planet Swans ArchivesWhy oh why don’t we ever learn. A goal up at the interval and the game is there for the taking. But we insist on sitting back, almost comfortable in the misconception that we are capable of holding onto a lead. And yet again we proved it to be just that – a misconception.
The record books will always show that Scunthorpe salvaged a point in the second minute of stoppage time. The reality is that the goal could have come in any of the preceding thirty minutes such was the change around in play from the half time interval where Swansea were ahead and comfortable.
Following the home draw against Bradford on Tuesday night, Kenny Jackett was in the mood for change and sent his 442 line up out as follows
Willy
Sam Austin Monk Williams
Forbesy Big Leon Tatey Robbo
Bayo Little Leon
Subs: Murphy, Macdonald, Fallon, Roberto, Macca
The surprise was the dropping once again of captain Martinez. No doubt, on the back of a non win this tactic will be blamed for the reason we didn’t win but the reality is it has nothing to do with it – pretty much with or without him we fall into the same trap and more often than not we seem to be caught by it.
Scunthorpe had started by far the better of the two sides and by the time Billy Sharp rose – unmarked of course – to head a corner in in the 6th minutes, they could easily have been at least a goal to the good. Memories of last season at the same ground were coming back as Scunthorpe pressed, pressed and then pressed some more for good measure. As the Swans struggled to get out of their own third, let alone further, there seemed little hope of anything happening for the unchanged Swansea.
But the first ten/fifteen minutes was as good as it got then for Scunthorpe and slowly the Swans came into the game. The occasional pass looked to break down the defence but that never happened until Andy Robinson was upended in the penalty area. Definite penalty and with Trundle absent through injury, it was Robinson himself who sent the keeper the wrong way from the spot and the Swans were level.
Less than five minutes later they were ahead. Knight capitalised on some almost Swansea-esque defending to get in front of the last man and his first touch was enough to prod the ball past Musselwhite into the net and the Swans were ahead. Cue celebrations from the 200ish travelling support and the hope of a second away win in seven days.
From then until the interval we never looked like adding to the lead but we were most definitely in control. Knight and Bayo were looking more effective than Fallon and Bayo and in midfield, Tate, Britton, Forbes and Robbo were having the lions share of possession without really creating for the front two.
And at half time it seemed as if the only outcome would be more Swansea goals such was the disarray at that stage of the home side. Wrong again. As we came out for the second half we sat deeper and deeper. Scunthorpe grew in confidence the more we sat back and they sensed that they could snatch something out of the game. And when Keogh replaced Johnson just after the hour, Swansea sat back deeper as the main threat was on the pitch (Sharp having been stretchered off soon after he scored)
Swansea were rocking and Keogh forced a desperate full length save from Willy and Torpey shot straight at the same man after muscling his way past Kev. The goal was coming surely. In amongst all of this Bayo had gone close with a header in one of Swansea’s rare trips out of their half. Fallon replaced Knight to increase our aerial presence and made two or three quality clearance headers as Scunthorpe pushed harder and harder.
And Fallon could, maybe even should, have been the hero as Swansea broke with the 90 minutes appearing. Williams placed the perfect cross in from the left which saw Fallon rise at the far post but head wide. And as Scunny prepared to take the goal kick we had no idea how costly the miss was to prove. Should he have scored? Difficult to see from the other end of the pitch but a gut feeling on this one should be yes.
But that aside, 3-1 would have been the biggest flattering of our season and we paid for it in the second of four added minutes. A corner was once again not cleared at all by the Swans and if you give Steve Torpey an acre to play in he will punish you. And the glances at the linesman were more of hope rather than anything concrete as the ball ended in the back of the net and the home fans celebrated with the one time Swansea hero.
It was nothing more than they deserved from an inept second half performance and as the final whistle blew there were arguments between our own team as most of the players also elected to disappear down the tunnel without even the acknowledgement of the away support. Tate and Robbo apart this was a poor show having just seven days earlier celebrated with them a win at Forest. Disappointment or not, people that travel away from home at least deserve to be thanked for their own efforts. Poor showing from Jackett and his players on that front at least.
Yet again though we have thrown away points because we cannot defend a lead and until that changes then we will not pick up the required points for automatic promotion. All is not lost but something has to change in our mentality if we are to prevent the word not disappearing.
Huddersfield on home. Friday night. Massive game.
