Game Thirty - Swindon Town Away

15th November 2008

Wow - it's hard to believe that this was to be the first weekend away game since the trip to Boundary Park nearly a whole month ago. With the away form that served us so well in the opening weeks of the season, it seemed vital for us to regain our footing and look to return home with three points.

This was to be the first match against Swindon since the famous 4-3 defeat at Wembley 15 years before and to say that that dominated the thoughts of the local fans in the build up was an understatement as the Swindon media and programme took the opportunity to remember possibly the best game that the famous old stadium ever saw.

So an early start was needed as it was back onto Fox Travel for this one after the luxury of various forms of travel for the previous two away games... and for once, it was almost like the old days when it was genuinely fun on the coaches. The customary sleep was natural until the services where we bumped into Dexter and Jodie like the good old days. Alan and co were all out in force too so random chats were at a premium.

After that it was next stop Swindon and the magic roundabout which is a force to be reckoned with... unless you're a Fox Travel driver who just ploughs straight across the middle - legend! With us all parked up, I headed off into town to find people at the local pub but instead bumped into Andy, Ben, Joe and Tommeh and so decided to stick with them and head into the stadium earlier than planned.

This is just your typical league one ground that we are becomming accustomed with now but with the added bonus of a "Stockport Style" open stand with no roof that away fans can also get tickets for if they feel the need.

With the five of us soon joined by Bert, Wilksey, Maybes, Dexter and others from Foxestalk and we all crammed into a small space towards the back of the side stand as kick off approached. The "rocking robin" and overweight cheerleader remain possibly the most bizarre thing I've ever seen at a football match and after watching Leicester for all that time, that is saying something!

The game kicked off and our attention was soon drawn to the steward coming up the stairs saying that if we wanted to stand in more room, we could all move to the other stand behind the goal where we could relax a bit more. Happy days - it's always better to be behind the goal at away games for some reason... although with the cold wind soon whipping around us, the decision to move was soon being questionned by me and the random guy I got chatting to during the first half.

I suppose I should comment on the match at some point and to be honest it was Swindon who looked more likely to take the lead in a pretty uneventful first half. Goal machine Simon Cox was played through on goal and somehow he placed his shot a good few yards wide. Personally I was already cursing being a goal down so to get away with that felt like a goal in our favour.

Corners reigned in on us and Henderson was at hand to clear any danger and ensure that we went in at half time level. From one such corner that got caught in the wind, Hendo claimed a difficult catch only to see the ball headed out of his hands and into the net only for the referee to correctly rule it out much to our relief.

At half time, after checking our (losing) bets to the scores, we headed down to the front row on the far left of the stand for the third view of the game. Front row barmy army! This new view from the stand seemed to be reflected with a new view from the players as for the first time in the game they started to move the ball around better and looking to make an impression on the game. Dyer went close with a deflected effort that just went wide of the post and we started to dominate possession and play with meaning.

Corners of our own were swung into the box and as we started to press more and more and it seemed only a matter of time before the net would ripple with a city goal.

And finally it came. Oakley picked the ball up just outside the area, shimmied past a defender and lashed the ball across the keeper into the net. Cue pandemonium. We all shot forward to the adverstising boards, with me, Joe, Andy and Lil' Dave jumping the row in front in our excitement. Arms everywhere and the atmosphere kicked in as we moved back to the top of the table.

As we were still enjoying being one up, a high ball was played over the top of the Swindon defence which Fryatt managed to flick past the unrushing keeper and then casually roll it into the empty net. Let celebreation numero two commence.

This was turning into one of the classic away days as we were two nil up away from home in the cold, having a laugh with fellow city fans, and had had two manic goal celebrations to contend with which resulted in muddy footprints left on seats as we lept rows to get to the front.

The quality banter was only continued after the second goal as a steward with a cheap burberry cap started to get abuse as he looked more and more miserable. Chants of "you're gonna cry in a minute!" didn't go down well and he soon resorted to sticking his fingers up at the crowd and walking off in a hissy fit to cries of "you're getting sacking in the morning". Surley one of the main aspects of the job is to deal with that kind of thing and frankly he got off lightly with some mickey taking compared to the abuse that some people get. Bless him though - Im sure he was back home in time for his bed.

At 2-0 it was perfect though, fun banter and good laughs were being had.... and even the dark clouds gathering overhead didn't look set to dampen the mood as we carried on having our fun behind the goal.... well..... some of us did.

We even spotted a certain young member of Foxestalk gathered with the erm... chav-ier section of our fan base who ran like the clappers when a steward headed in his direction causing much amusement amongst the rest of us. At worst he would have been asked to tone it down a bit but Usain Bolt had nothing on him as he sprinted away to the middle of that group where he couldn't be seen. Bless.

Back to the game though and everything was going well ....but we didn't brace ourselves for the last 6 minutes of the game as Swindon pulled one back when a miss-hit shot fell to Simon Cox who just rolled it into an empty net. Nervousness started but so what if they'd got one back.... they'd never get another..... bugger!

A long throw was flicked on by our own defender and was acrobatically turned in at the back post past a despairing dive from Hendo. How had this happened? True we didn't deserve to be two nil up in all honesty but to conceed two goals in three minutes to throw away 2 points was criminal and the third time we'd lost a two goal lead in 5 away games. How can we keep doing this?

We pushed forward at the end trying to repair the damage but it was too late.

With two points lost and the chance to cement our place at the top of the league in pieces, the final whistle was greeted with a muted response. 3 points to 1. 1st place to 2nd. Happiness to misery. What a crazy difference three minutes can make. At least Jimmy Bullard was there to put a smile back on our faces.

And so it was back onto the coach and the average trip back home where we were left to think of what should have been. A book was passed round too for us to write messages to former striker Iain Hume who had had suffered a major injury when elbowed in the head last weekend - a nice gesture and flicking through it was nice to see what other people had written to him (although why no-one can spell his name after playing for us for a few years is beyond me.)

We arrived back at the walkers in good time and I caught sight of the fixtures on the board outside. Hardly fills you with excitement does it? Gone are the big names in English football and in are Dagenham & Redbridge. Joy!

So thirty games in the season done and the 100% record is still going strong. The first target though is to get to the 2nd January without missing a game as then i'll have done my initial target of 365 days without missing a game. QPR away, the first game of 2008 is the last time I wasn't at a first team Leicester match and boy has a lot happened since then. We're in the third tier of English football and QPR are one of the richest clubs in the world.... football. It's a funny old game!

Oh and thanks to Lil' Dave for a few of his pics that I "borrowed" for this blog. Cheers lad!

Game Twenty Nine - Yeovil Town home

11th November

So this was it then. The game in hand that could send us back to the top of league and possibly be the difference between a good start to the season and a great start. Such are the fine lines in football that we could have finished the game with Yeovil in any position from 1st to 5th and whilst the points difference between the teams is minimal, psycologically so much rides on each position that it was important to take the opportunity and head the table going into the next round of fixtures.

Having had the day off work to attend college in Nottingham (note to all - accountancy college isn't a great way to spend a day!), I made my longer than normal journey into the city and found myself around the place ridiculously early.... but that was ok as I was only there to collect the tickets for the Scunthorpe match in a few weeks. A bit of banter in the ticket office (being called "Sir" could well catch on I'm sure) and then I was off into town in search of food.

A quick bite to eat and then back to the stadium to get out of the cold winds and into the 1884 bar just to kill time waiting for my old man to arrive in from work. Didn't spend much time in there though and so decided to head up towards the station to meet the Cators and Dexter who hadn't been seen since the Huddersfield game over a month ago. Unacceptable!! Some how I got roped into being a pack horse and carrying her bag all the way to the ground - how that quite happened I'm not sure?!

Left them at the respective turnstiles and headed up to my normal spot in the East Stand where the old man was already there ready for a fun filled night of League One action.... and for once, it actually was! Right from the off we seemed to have adopted a passing mentality and stroked the ball around beautifully at times with Yeovil left chasing shadows. It's been years since I've been able to watch a Leicester side pass a team off the park but in all honesty what good is the quality football if you don't use it effectively in the final third of the pitch?

Chances came and went. Fryatt knocking it just wide from a Howard flick on, Oakley blasting it straight at the keeper after a great build up involving about 20 passes, and Oakley again just lifting the ball over the bar after a wonder pass from King left the defence for dead. Whilst this was all good, we were still conscious that we were level and Yeovil had a couple of efforts of little note that made us a little less comfortable than we had been.

It wasn't long though before we finally took the lead midway through the first half and it was a goal that was so familiar to us all after the Dickov and Deane promotion show. A long ball was flicked on by Howard and Dyer dummied the defender and lashed the ball home with his left foot to put us (theoretically) top of the league.

We continued to push after the goal but couldn't force a second despite other chances and good football in which we dominated possession and hardly let them even enter our half of the pitch, leaving Henderson looking a lonely figure.

The half time whistle sounded to a standing ovation and I headed off down to meet up with Katy and check out her random scarf that she wanted to show off to me... of course it didn't have a patch on the Ivory Coast or Leicester / Inter Milan wonder but it was a valiant effort none the less! Random chit chat and visit from Roy the Hullfox and it was soon time for the second half action.

And what a disappointing second half it turned out to be after the joys of the first. Nothing much happened apart from a few longer range efforts, one of which, a Fryatt free kick, just scraped the post on it's way wide. Yeovil seemed to grow in confidence from the fact that they were somehow not dead and buried and turned the pressure on in the last five minutes and you could almost see the script of a late equaliser ruining a professional performance.

But for once it was not to be and we held out to claim all three points and climb back up to the top of league one much to the joy and relief of those still in the stadium at the end.

So another game down and one step closer to an instant return to the Championship. A couple of away games to follow now with a trip to Swindon before a top of the table clash with promotion rivals Scunthorpe. Whether we are still top at the end of this tricky patch is yet to be seen but if we are then we should be in a prime position coming up to the christmas period which could determine how this season ends. In a season of firsts, could the final league position reflect what is becomming the theme? Fingers crossed!

Apologies for the shorter blog and if it appears different to normal - the website is playing up again and it's taking longer than normal to do anything on it!

Game Twenty Eight - Stevenage Home (FA Cup First Round)

8th November 2008

In a season of firsts for our club, I think this had been the one that I had been dreading the most. The prospect of starting our FA Cup campaign from the beginning and before Big Ben had chimed in the new year. The whole concept of the FA Cup third round weekend is something that I've loved ever since I was young. First weekend of the new year and the chance to have a break from the league and dream of winning the greatest domestic club competition in the world. Who can forget the likes of Liverpool v Havant & Waterville or our game against Spurs from a few years ago? It's the magic of the FA Cup later rounds, and the prospect of missing out on the best weekend in the football calendar didn't bare thinking about.

The draw had paired us against non-league Stevenage at home, a truly un-inspiring tie but a banana skin none the less and after the recent performances, I genuinely headed to the stadium expecting us to slip up and exit before Santa had even thought of heading out on his rounds.

Arrived at the stadium in plenty of time, minus the old man, and headed into the sports bar to catch the end of the Arsenal v Man Utd game... hard to believe I had been at that stadium earlier that week! Met up with Helen and Jobber in there before heading round to the kop. With my Dad deciding that £15 was too much to watch us in action, I decided to head up to the back of SK1 for todays match with a few of the other FoxesTalk lot. Been a while since I watched a game from this stand so was nice to have a bit of variety in the view.... although the empty seats is becomming a feature this season.
Stevenage started the stronger side and came close to taking the lead a couple of times. A great through ball put Cole clear only for him to drag his shot wide, and a poor back pass from Tunchev nearly let him in again but Henderson was sharp enough to race through and get a foot on the ball to get it clear. Mistakes were all to often and corners were far too frequent for my liking as even Steve Howard had to help out the defence.

The nerves were starting to grow as the team just were no clicking. We needed that little spark to kick start us and it came from an unusual source of skill.... Oakley fed in Fryatt who worked his way down the wing, teasing the defence into submission before pulling it back for Dyer to lash home.

Nothing much happened during the remainder of the first half as the goal seemed to have knocked some belief out of the visiting side.

In the second half, our higher league status started to shine through and we piled forward looking to really kill the game off. Some good build up play saw Oakley have a shot well saved before Lloyd Dyer used his pace to drive forward and squaring it to Fryatt who curled it home beautifully from the edge of the area. Great finish and all relief lifted from the players and fans.

Not everyone enjoyed the goal though....

It was left to Andy King to completely wrap the game up with a stunning strike. He picked the ball up and lofted it over the keeper from fully 30 yards out with ball drifting in off the underside of the cross bar. A real contender for goal of the season.

At 3-0, we continued to press forward looking for more goals and a comical miss from Fryatt when he missed an open goal proved to be the highlight and saw Lil' Dave celebrate like the cup was ours!

No further goals followed though and we had to settle for 3-0 despite some late pressure from Stevenage.

And so that's the FA Cup campaign started for the season and our reward for beating Stevenage? A home tie to either Hereford or Dagenham & Redbridge. Playing either of those teams away would have been spot on but we can now look forward to another empty stadium for a home match and hope we can over come the next challenge. It won't be easy though, especially if they take the same approach as Stevenage did. They came to the Walkers to win and looked to attack at every opportunity. The magic of the FA Cup was present in them even if it didn't feel of any inspiration to us.

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And with that, an epic week is over. Four matches in four different competitions.... never thought I'd be able to say that but it was completely worth it! From League one to the FA Cup via the Johnstone's Paint Trophy and the Champions League.... what an adventure it has been (although I must admit it'll be nice to get back to a quiet period so I can recover!) In all the excitement, the league has almost been forgotten but we'll be back to it on Tuesday where three points would take us top and really round things off!

Game Twenty Seven - Arsenal v Fenerbahce (Champions League Group Stage)

5th November 2008

One of my main regrets in football was that I never got to go to Highbury before it was closed and Arsenal made the move to the Emirates Stadium. It was a classic old ground and I've always admired the way that Arsenal play the game in the right way. Whenever they take to the pitch, you know you are getting 'The Beautiful Game' in it's purest form. Pass and move. Options all over the pitch and all 11 players want to get a foot on the ball. Very different from the usual standards we're used too following Leicester!

And so on a whim, I looked into getting tickets for a random game and found that tickets were available for the Champions League group stage match against Fenerbahce and a quick check on trains to make sure I could get home and the decision was made! Johnstones Paint Trophy to Champions League action in 24 hours!

And so, still tired from the late night before at Rotherham, I set off from work and headed to the station for my train down to London. This had the potential to go horribly wrong with tubes and trains to negotiate and no way home if something went wrong so military precision was needed!

A quick doze on the train and a nice easy journey later and I was in London with the remains of the rush hour traffic and the 60,000 or so Arsenal fans all clamouring to get to the stadium. I had a rough idea of where I was heading so quickly made my way down to the tube platform and have never seen such a crush as bodies were flying around trying to squeeze onto the already overpacked tube. Two came and went before I managed to squeeze myself in and arch my back to allow the doors to close. Thankfully, I was only travelling two stops or I could have come out of London looking like The Hunchback of the Walkers Stadium!

Arrived at Finsbury Park station and made my way out following the mass of red. Bought a programme and went in a smaller version of the club shop and then realised I appeared to be nowhere near the ground and so set off on the 10 minute or so walk to the stadium. A road sign pointed me in the right direction and I made my way through the streets with no sign of the stadium at all.... until I went under a railway bridge and was greeted by the bright lights....

.... how can a stadium like this creep up on you? Unbelievable! Turkish fans lined the area outside and there was a real friendly atmosphere only usually associated with friendlies and everyone was out to have a fun night as flashes from cameras and the fireworks overhead kept lighting the streets up.

A quick phone call to Sez, someone I'd met on a football forum site years ago, and we arranged to actually meet up for the first time at half time as it was only 15 minutes from kick off now.

I found my turnstile and was greeted by a huge concourse and yet no idea where I had to go to find my seat which was situated in the upper tier behind the goal. An endless amount of stairs left me with that same feeling the first time I went into the upper tier of the old kop at Filbert Street for the first time... I remember being young at the time and so it seemed to take an age to get up to the second concourse. Finally though, your ready to step out and see the pitch for the first time.... and what a view you get.

Simply breathtaking! The Fener fans were situated to the right and were already warming up their vocal cords as I made my way up the 37 rows to get to my seat right near the back.

Now Ive known that the atmosphere wasn't meant to be great at some of this stadium and when I got to my seat I found out why. The seats are just too comfortable. Padded seats! Back rests past your shoulders! Major leg room! I've sat in arm chairs that were less comfortable than those seats!!

Within minutes of arriving, the players emerged from the tunnel and the famous champions league music was played over the tannoy sending a shiver down my spine. Already it was proving to be worth the cost and time and the game hadn't even kicked off yet! The Fener fans worked hard to get an atmosphere going and they happily amused themselves singing and bouncing around like nothing I'd ever seen before - a joy to behold just as Dave had told me they would be.

The game kicked off and Arsenal immediately went on the attack, passing the ball around like we could only dream of doing. For the first five minutes, the ball never left the Fener half and the only time a player in anything other than a red shirt touched the ball was when an outstretched leg deflected the ball away from it's intended destination. They just couldn't cope... and yet the goal remained unthreatened apart from one Van Persie effort that just drifted wide. A few free kicks from wide positions offered a more positive threat and from one of these, a loose ball fell to Fabregas whos dangerous cross was well palmed away by the Fener keeper to the feet of Van Persie who saw his shot deflected over the bar by a defender throwing himself in the way.

Van Persie was dominating the attack and he once again found himself in a scoring position only for the keeper to touch a shot onto the crossbar. Volkan was having a brilliant game between the sticks and it was only him and the dogged defence keeping the gunners at bay.

As half time sounded, I made my way down to the concourse and grabbed a quick bite to eat before waiting for Sez to arrive from wherever she was seated. When she finally did show up, we said hi and chatted like we were old friends who always hung out together which was great - you'd never have never known we hadn't met before. Turns out that she'd saved me a seat next to where her season ticket seat is, as one of her friends hadn't been able to make it, so I walked all the way around the stadium to her seats where I was introduced to her Dad and mate, Scruffy. And the view from where they sat was simply amazing (and so it should be for £1,250 a season ticket!!). The best view I've ever had at a match as it blew me away - the pictures don't do it justice at all.

The frustration on the pitch continued to grow as Arsenal always attempt to score the perfect goal and refuse to shoot when in a prime position. Even Cesc Fabregas who would score from miles out last season was always looking to play the ball through rather than have a crack. Technically though, you have to say they are superb. They hammer the ball around and control it in a second. They're also so aware of the positions of players around them.... runs were made all over the place but as soon as they stepped offside, there was no way that they would receive a pass. Not once in the entire game were they flagged offside!

Not many chances came though in the second half. The closest they came was a corner swung in that was headed just over his own bar by a defender as Eboue looked to give Arsenal the vital lead.

As the game wore on, it became more clear that there were to be no goals as Fenerbahce defended for their lives and had no chance of breaking the deadlock themselves. Disappointing not to see the celebrations of a goal but chatting to Sez during the game had been great so it was definately worth the trip down to London.

As the final whistle blew, I made my way out with those three and we made our way back to the main road in the direction of Finsbury Park tube station. This was where I said my goodbyes to Sez and her dad and thanked them for a memorable night before jumping onto a tube back to St Pancras.

My train wasn't till 11:15pm so I had an hour to kill at the station so grabbed something to eat and relaxed in the rather nice cafe in the modern area of the station - highly recommend checking it out although I imagine the novelty will be gone when it's rammed like it normally would be. In fact the only people at the station could all be captured in one picture - not bad for one of the busiest transport networks in the country eh?

I was exhausted by the time I got on the train and found myself sat opposite a couple of Arsenal fans who spotted my Leicester scarf early into the journey. That started the conversation up and up until Luton (where they got off) we exchanged tales from our random trips around the country, or in their case, the world watching the teams that we love. Of course their tales of Champions League finals and away days in Portugal and the likes kind of left mine in the shadow but it still broke up the journey and the rest of the journey seemed like an eternity as the effects of the last couple of days really started to kick in and it took all my effort to keep my eyes open. A quick taxi back to Syston and then I came to the realisation that I had college deadlines to meet so at 1:35am, I cracked open the books and ploughed on with it... what a way to end a mammoth trip like that!

What a stadium, and a great chance to meet up with an old friend for the first time. I'll be there again before too long with any luck.... and next time, it'll be with my usual random away day companion. Whilst I will never be able to go to Highbury, this in some ways helps to make up for it. Remember, remember the 5th of november..... the day the ghost of regret was laid to rest.

Arsenal? Done!

Game Twenty Six - Rotherham away (JP Trophy quarter final)

4th November 2008

Having already disposed of Hartlepool and Lincoln, we now faced League Two side Rotherham in the area quarter finals of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy. Now this competition has split the Leicester fans in half. Some see it as a useless waste of time and an un-neccessary distraction from the league, whereas others see it as a chance of a day out at Wembley and a bit of glory in a darker period in our history. Me? I'm of the latter breed having never seen us in action at the national stadium despite all the times we played their in the 90s. This was the only realistic chance of us making it there at the moment and so I wanted to clutch onto it with both hands.

After knocking off work slightly early, I made the short walk to the train station in order to head up to Sheffield where Rotherham are temporarily based at the Don Valley Stadium. The train was the perfect opportunity to relax and get a bit of sleep in what was to be a hectic two days of football action.

I'd agreed to meet Tash and Foz at sheffield train station and my train got in just as they arrived to meet me and we headed off to Sheffield Hallam student union for a quick drink and random chat before it was time to leave for the stadium.

The "SuperTram" would be our transport for the night but whoever named it super was clearly having an off day in the intelligence department. Nothing super about it as trams seemed to be travelling back and forth without any heading in our destination... didn't help that Foz had us on the wrong platform at one point though but we finally found the right one as the drizzle started.


With only small clues as to where we were going, we made the decision to follow the guy in the Rotherham hat as we assumed that he would be heading to the ground.... until he get off before everyone else leaving us confused.... there he goes....

Finally made it into the ground with about five minutes to kick off and found Katy who had been waiting for me in our seats. She was clearly so thrilled to see me!!

The Don Valley stadium is another strange one and one not made for football. Originally designed for athletics, the stadium is a 25,000 seater one which leads to a strange atmosphere with the 3/4000 fans that occupy it for Rotherham United games. Whilst most of the stadium is open to the elements, the area that we were in for the first half was covered and offered a fair bit of shelter.

Now I've seen some poor games in my time and this one was right up there. City didn't look interested in the slightest at making any further progress in the competition. Having already disposed of Leeds, Wolves and Southampton in cup competitions this season, Rotherham played with no fear and looked far more dangerous than us in all departments of the pitch with our only threat of the first half coming from a couple of Barry Hayles efforts.

It was left to me and Katy to create our own entertainment in the stands and the man in front of us timing the game with his stop-watch had us chuckling to ourselves.... well until Rotherham took the lead in first half injury time. A deep cross found the defence asleep and it was left for Broughton to smash the ball past a helpless Henderson.

Half time fun taking random photos was had with Titch and we then made our way down to near the front of the open stand to join the rest of the FoxesTalk lot for a bit of banter for the second half. For a midweek game there was a fair few of us who had made our way up north and so the focus was taken away from the game in parts as it was good to all be together standing in a group.

In the mean time, Rotherham added a second goal while once more, City offered little in the final third apart from a long range Oakley effort that nearly squeezed into the net. In fact until the final 5 minutes, we never looked like getting back into the game and then they finally woke up. Howard and Ashley Chambers should have both done better when it great positions and then with the clock ticking down, we were awarded a penalty (which was ironically celebrated as if we'd won the world cup to keep us amused)

and a slim chance of making a comeback....

.... but Fryatt saw his penalty saved to cap a woeful performace from the Foxes. Another chance deep into stoppage time was cleared off the line, and a goal mouth scramble was somehow cleared to send us on our way out of the competition.

Me and Katy then met up with Scoweh, Shrek, Tash and Foz and we made the long walk around the stadium to the exits before I said my goodbyes to Tash and Foz and we set off for the car park. Lift home? Yes then! (to steal a phrase once more!).

A very drunk Shrek made it an interesting journey home as he was desperate for KFC and insisted on calling everyone in his contacts list telling them how rubbish LCFC are. After a quick stop for food, we were off back to the land of Leicestershire where Katy, bless her heart, spent time dropping us all back home adding plenty of time on to her own journey. Very much appreciated though and we had a lovely sing song on the last leg of the journey after dropping the other two off. Kaiser Chiefs ("I want crisps") and the Kooks ("In all situuuuuuaaaaaaaations") made sure that the giggles didn't stop until we were back in sunny Syston complete with near empty petrol tank after her major day of travel.

A quick chat and reflection on the day and a photo for the blog and she was on her way on her long journey back home. Ta love! Major wubbage for the lift!

So that's another competition that is no more for us. Our main realistic chance of reaching a Wembley final this year is out the window and whilst it would have been fun to have continued the adventure, I found myself not all that disappointed to be out. The night itself was such a good laugh that it really took the edge off what would normally have been a bitterly disappointing result. Now don't get me wrong, it was a hideous performance, and a farce that the team put in a display like that in front of 1,500 travelling fans but at the end of the day, we need to start focussing our attention on the league. We're starting to look tired and these extra games could be the difference between success and failure in league one. Im not looking to make excuses for our recent performances but fatigue is clearly setting in... amongst me as well as the players and if it came to a trophy and another year of league one, or promotion, it really is no contest.

Good luck to Rotherham though - they played some neat football and thoroughly deserved their win. Let's just hope we lost to the eventual winners!! Next stop on the football tour.... another random game. This time, my Champions League debut.... Arsenal v Fenerbahce!!

Game Twenty Five - Bristol Rovers Home

1st November 2008

It seems bizarre to think that this early in the season, the game against Bristol Rovers had that "must win" feel about it. Such is the way the league is forming this season, a bad one of a few results and you can find yourself down struggling to retain a play off position. One win though and you're right back up there with promotion in mind, and the world is rosy once more.

I was meant to be heading up early to the ground for this one to meet up for a pre-game drink but thanks to my own lazyness, I ended up sleeping in and then following the usual routine of travelling in with my old man.

Today before the game, we had a minutes applause in memory of former Leicester defender, John Sjoberg. Minutes applauses and silences are very strange things, for one minute, everyone within the stadium is united in thought about either the person in question or loved ones who are no longer with us. No matter what the rivalry between two teams, it's very rare that the minute of respect is disgraced and that's a true tribute in itself.

And so to kick off:

Once again the first half was one that would not live long in the memory.... so much so that it hasn't even survived the space of a week as I'm struggling to recall anything of great importance that happened in that 45 minute spell... a few efforts were fired in but neither keeper had a real save to make. Jo Kuffour up front for Rovers was causing the defence a handfull but the recalled Henderson was left untroubled. A long range Andy King effort was as close as we came to making a dent on the scoreboard and the half time whistle sounded with a mixed reception of grunts and applause.

The half time entertainment was supplied by Katy and Stez's 'celeb' spotting as Einstein and Tim Flowers were checked off their list. Worst. Look-a-likes. Ever.

The second half started quite brightly and a through ball nearly released Lloyd Dyer on goal but the keeper was alert enough to snuff out the danger. It soon resorted to being a poor game again though and I amused myself by taking photos of the silohettes of the crowd watching the game. How has it come to this?

From another overhit cross from Gradel though, the game sparked into life as the Bristol Rovers right back clearly handled the ball in the area when attempting to control. A blatant penalty for the second game running looked set to turn the match in the oppositions favour. The one main job of the referee is to spot fouls but if they can't do their job then why bother even having them? Everyone in the stadium saw the hand move towards the ball yet he was the only one not to acknowledge the foul!! The heat was turned up and it was game on.

Soon though, the referee was again centre of attention when Fryatt was alert enough to pick up a loose ball and was tripped a yard or two inside the area only for the referee to award a freek kick on the edge of the area. Livid!!

With the referee controlling matters, it seemed only a matter of time before Rovers would launch the sucker punch and so it came mid way through the second half. What seemed like a harmless throw in was soon turned into a goal of the season contendor. Instead of controlling it, Kuffour allowed it to run across his body and he lashed it from 25 yards into the top corner. The first goal that Henderson was to conceed was one that no keeper would have saved. While nothing can make you feel good about going a goal down, it's always a joy to see skill like that first hand.

City then continued to press but without creating any real chances and it looked like another game was passing us by as Rovers resorted to blatant time wasting and the keeper in particular seemed more intent on taking as much time as possible and arguing every decision going as the clock ticked down.

Barry Hayles and Nicky Adams were thrown into the fray as desperation started to creep in and balls were launched forward with verocity in the vain hope that we might find a way back into the match..... and it was from one of these balls that that's exactly what happened. With three minutes remaining, Mattock launched a high ball forward, Hayles flicked it on and Fryatt slotted it past the keeper from a tight angle. Justice was done and even Filbert Fox showed his relief as he charged on the pitch to celebrate.

Were we done there though? Were we hell! As we dusted off our "Foxes Never Quit" momentos, a corner was won after a scramble in the box. Adams swung it in and the keeper flapped and pushed it into his own player. Bodies were everywhere and soon it was in the net. Time stopped as we waited for the foul to be given.... we couldn't have won this could we? 94th minute winners don't happen to us...... well they do now! Step forward Matty Fryatt and start the celebrations!

Within seconds of the restart, the ref blew for full time and we'd got the win we so badly needed. It hadn't been pretty, it hadn't been impressive but those last 5 minutes could well have changed the course of the season. With points being dropped left right and centre at the moment, three points were vital to bring back a sense of belief to the fans once more.

For the first time in a while, we could head home through the tunnel with the sound of victorious horns beeping.

It's amazing how brighter the world can seem after a win. 20 minutes before, we were bemoaning another defeat and now we were thinking of promotion once more.... football.... it's a funny old game.