Disappointed as I was that this would be the last live game of football I would watch this year, (I will be watching the Newcastle game on TV live and hopefully Sky will choose our last game for broadcast too!) I was delighted by the performance and the result.
The stats show that Villa were less in the game than I feared, but their counter attacking style is to be admired. They are really good at it and caught us once and on another occasion they beat Mark but could only hit the post.
However, there was a moment that really touched me amongst the fantastic singsong atmosphere, Chelsea baiting and Barcelona shirt (our 4th kit for the week) wearing.
The guy in his late teens in a white polo shirt in the middle of the Hammersmith end who stand up and shouted ‘Stand up for Roy Hodgson` deserves a mention.
Not only was it a great call, but perfect timing given our lead in the game, that all the Hammersmith end had just stood up in unison of hating Chelsea and the season we have had considering where we were with three games left last season. Besides, on the last home game such sentiment is delivered everywhere and almost expected.
The call was responded to in perfect tradition with the Hammersmith end`s front and middle jumping to their feet which was fantastic as we are often keen not to ‘stand up for` many things in respect of the view of those behind. Then both the Riverside and Stevenage Road stands got to their feet and burst into spontaneous song and applause. It brought a tear to my eye.
I was worried that Roy Hodgson would miss it as the game was in full flow and he will never take his eye off the ball. But as I reminded myself on the way home, that is exactly why we love him.
The other questions puzzling me on Saturday night were:
– Was anyone enthralled by The Carew/Hangeland battle as much as I was?
– Is Danny Murphy the only Englishman able to take a perfect penalty?
– Does Aaron Hughes get enough credit?
– Six Villa players touched the ball in the second half before Fulham scored in 27 seconds. Should we have let all of them had a sniff of the ball before scoring?
– Is Luis Boa Morte still doing us favours? (NB – You will have to have seen his performance vs Liverpool to understand this question)
– Is Zoltan Gera back to his best?
– Is it me, or does Gera`s body shape make his legs look too long and made of rubber?
– Now that 7th place is confirmed as assuring European action, are we going to do something Fulhamish?
Your comments please!
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