16th October 2000   

More Swindon reaction

PAUL SMITH has played his last game for Athletic - after injuring himself when he fell down a manhole. The versatile Burnley man has 12 stitches in his shin and, as he will be out for two or three weeks, Athletic look sure to release him when his loan spell runs out. Smith did well as a striker during the weekend victory over Swindon and there was a chance his one-month deal would have been extended. But manager Andy Ritchie said: “It will be difficult now that he’s injured. It’s really unlucky for the lad, especially as he looked to have something about him when he played up front.” Smith’s freak injury occurred last night when he was unloading his car at home. As it was dark, he didn’t see that the manhole was uncovered - and he plunged straight down it. Athletic’s consolation is that Carlo Corazzin, who missed Saturday’s long-awaited win, could return against Wycombe tomorrow. 

The Canadian came back from international duty with no injury problems, only to twist his ankle in training on Friday. Athletic hope Corazzin will pass a fitness test and come into the side as a straight swap for Smith. It is vital they produce another big effort against Wycombe, but the visitors are fifth in the table and have a fine defensive record. Craig Dudley will serve a one-match ban after being sent off for two bookable offences on Saturday. The striker, who walked off to a standing ovation after scoring Athletic’s winner, misses the trip to Bristol Rovers on October 28. Chris Lightfoot has returned to Crewe Alexandra at the end of his one-month loan. Ritchie felt the 30-year-old was no longer needed as fellow centre-back Shaun Garnett is now back to fitness. Decision time is also approaching for defender Mark Watson, whose initial one-month trial spell expires after next weekend.

IN a short career which has had more than its share of ups and downs, Craig Dudley had never experienced a day like this. Dudley is a former England under-20 starlet, but he was singled out for criticism this season as manager Andy Ritchie became frustrated with his inability to slog it out for 90 minutes. He answered with his first goal of the campaign, a scorching effort which finally ended Athletic’s appalling run of three points from 10 games. And, just for good measure, there was another first for Dudley as he was sent off in the last minute for a foul which earned him his second yellow card. That, however, was a minor inconvenience for Athletic, who were just relieved to pocket the points thanks to a vastly improved defensive display. This is, of course, a small step on what will prove an arduous road to recovery. But they deserved their celebrations, not least because of the debuts of two promising recruits. Both Tony Carss and David Eyres had impressive games in midfield as Athletic switched to 4-4-2 and locked out a Swindon team who made little impression around goal.

The result was a second clean sheet of the season, yet the most pleasing feature was Athletic’s fighting spirit. After the debacle at Rotherham, Ritchie had bitterly accused his players of lacking the guts for a battle. He wasn’t the only one. Here, they gave their all from first to last and, as they savour that unfamiliar winning feeling, must remember that the same level of passion is an absolute necessity if fears of relegation are to prove no more than early-season scaremongering. With the new system in place, Athletic were much more compact in all areas of their play. Scott McNiven allowed little to pass on the right, the centre-backs stood firm and Mark Innes did well at left-back after Andrew Holt was axed for the first time in two years. With less onus on distribution from defence — always a prerequisite of the sweeper system — they could also field a middle four of two scrappers and two attacking wide men. Skipper Lee Duxbury again did a manful job, and he got forward more effectively with Carss to sit and cover. Carss himself had an excellent debut, tackling strongly, causing problems in the box and using the ball sensibly. And the wingers, Eyres and Neil Adams, also showed the kind of industry Ritchie had demanded, with Eyres adding much-needed balance on the left.

Up front, Dudley had his best game for months in a surprise partnership with on-loan Burnley player Paul Smith. Smith, who started his Athletic career at wing-back, isn’t the most natural of strikers. But he used his height and weight to win countless free-kicks and, in the absence of Carlo Corazzin, provided enough muscle to upset Swindon’s hard-worked defence. Athletic almost went ahead after seven minutes when Dudley got a toe on Keith O’Halloran’s stray back-pass but could only direct it into the side-netting. The hosts were showing a gritty determination to get back on track and, without stretching Swindon too much, probed away well with some neat passing. The visitors’ first scent of goal came after 22 minutes as O’Halloran sent a well-struck volley just wide. But they suffered the first of three injury blows when key midfielder Matt Hewlett went off, to be followed later by centre-back Adam Willis and striker Gary Alexander — effectively the spine of their side. Their best chance fell to Martin Williams after 36 minutes when he chased Alexander’s flick and fired an inch past the post.

The visiting fans were celebrating a goal, so close had Williams come to the breakthrough. Athletic’s support took delight in the despair of realisation. Yet they suffered the same disappointment moments later when Dudley headed in an Adams cross, only to be flagged for offside. At least Athletic had put the ball in the net, a rare phenomenon when they aren’t already behind. They also forced Swindon ’keeper Bart Griemink into a save when Smith’s looping header threatened to creep under the bar from an awkward angle. Athletic started brightly after the break and Carss was only denied a debut goal by Griemink’s sprawling save. Carss brought another block from the Dutchman after 49 minutes, while, from the rebound, Smith curled an equally good opening wide from 20 yards. A goal, it seemed, had to come. But, where Athletic are concerned at the moment, it’s no sure thing that good football will have the desired result. It is just as likely to bring anguish at the other end and they had to stay on full alert as Swindon tried to use the pace of Williams every time they broke from defence. Athletic, though, weren’t to be denied. And they broke through after 71 minutes thanks to the hint of good fortune they fully deserved.

The initial credit should go to referee Steve Baines, who played an advantage when the ball fell to Carss 30 yards from goal. The new man’s shot was causing few problems until Dudley controlled it 12 yards out, spun sharply and hit a powerful right-foot strike which gave Griemink no chance. Confidence lifted, the livewire Dudley then went close with a long-range shot which swerved the wrong side of the post. But, as the clock ticked down, the hero turned villain — though only temporarily — when he committed a second foul deemed worthy of a booking. It may have been tough on the youngster as the slippery surface was making life difficult by the end. Despite their frayed nerves, Athletic managed to hang on through four minutes of injury time and mark their success with the elation of a cup-final victory.

MANAGERS’ VIEWS

ATHLETIC believe they have found the secret of Craig Dudley’s fitness problems — the striker has asthma. Andy Ritchie has complained of a lack of stamina in the 21-year-old, but a series of tests could make a huge difference to his career. Athletic had a similar dilemma with one of Ritchie’s old team-mates, Paul Warhurst, who was a changed man when the breathing difficulty was diagnosed. The condition went undetected at Notts County, where Dudley began his career, and he has also had loan spells at Shrewsbury, Hull and Chesterfield. Ritchie revealed: “We have just found out Craig has asthma and he may have to use sprays to help him. “He was huffing and puffing again in this game, but he played better than he has for a while. “I felt a bit sorry for him when he was sent off. It was a harsh decision, which was half to do with the surface. “But at least he showed some grit and determination to get there. We have done a lot of work with his running and perhaps the penny is dropping.”

After coming under fire from a section of fans, Ritchie admitted that the win against Swindon — Athletic’s first for two months — was a big relief. He said: “The three points were badly needed. A draw wouldn’t have been enough. “I’m also pleased we haven’t conceded. We looked stronger at the back and better as a unit. “We changed the system because we had the personnel to change it. We have got two wingers now, which we haven’t had for a long time. “The only gamble was Mark Innes at left-back, but he has enthusiasm and awareness and he did well. “It’s difficult when you get new players with no time to prepare and it’s a worry that you won’t get it right. “We had a 15-minute practice match with David Eyres and Tony Carss on Friday and both looked good from the word go. “David gave us balance and experience. He knows where to go and when to make his runs. “And Tony was a bundle of energy. He got a lot of tackles in and won a lot of balls in the air.”

Swindon boss Colin Todd was angry with his below-par side, insisting he had arrived at Boundary Park expecting to win. Todd said: “I thought before the game that it was there for the taking. I would even have been disappointed with a 0-0 draw. “These are the games I think we should be taking points from, but the wheels came off and we didn’t hurt Oldham with our passing or our movement. That’s the biggest disappointment of all.”

Official Latics Web Site

Ossur Hansen the Faroe Island midfielder who had a brief spell at Boundary Park about 12 months ago has returned for a further 4 week trial. Hansen scored for the Faroe Islands in their recent 2-2 draw with Croatia in the World Cup qualifying game. Manager Andy Ritchie said "When Ossur returned to the Faroe's last time we said we would be keeping tabs on his progress and we have seen him in action for the Faroe's in World Cup qualifying games. The season in the Faroe's has ended for the winter so we are taking the opportunity of having a further look at him".

Saturday's hero Craig Dudley will have to serve a one match ban following his sending off on Saturday. The goal scoring striker had his best game for some time and this came after he had been diagnosed as suffering from exercise asthma. Manager Andy Ritchie had been unhappy that Craig always seemed short of breath after only 15 or 20 minutes of a game and therefore had the player checked out by a specialist. The findings showed he suffers from asthma which is triggered by exercise. The specialist has prescribed medication which Craig cannot commence for four weeks, but it is hoped it will help to get him through a full match without problems. 

While the players did show plenty of effort, there was little guile or prowess to break through a largely unemployed defence. "We had no problem with effort or desire from players. The problem was simply down to a lack of quality," he said. "When we were in possession we did not create anything to threaten Oldham. We hardly knocked a quality ball into the box. "A bit of quality, or something like we produced against Wigan or Oxford would have won us the game but we simply did not produce that at all." Todd said his side should have walked away from Lancashire with all three points. "I decided to keep the same squad because they had done well for a period of time and I was hoping for them to kick on again," he said. "What disappointed me was that although we had the possession we did not create the danger because we kept giving the ball away. "I would not have even been pleased with a draw to be honest. Oldham have come off the back of two poor results and we have been in form. Yet they are the ones who have won the game. "I believed before the match that it was there for the taking, but we did not hurt them enough and we were very sloppy with the ball."

He said he will continue to press for the level of standards he demands from his players. "What amazes me is how we can perform so well for two or three games and then see the wheels fall off again," he said. "I am a man who likes high standards and although we have shown it in patches this season, our standards were not as high as I would have liked for this match. "We need more of a killer instinct when we are on the ball. We were unable to hurt Oldham by creating chances. Players were missing in a game which was not that tough. We just did not set the right tempo." With a tricky match at Swansea tomorrow night and then home games with Bristol Rovers and Millwall, there is little time for Todd to dwell on the defeat. He is determined to improve the team's on-field fortunes, even if he does not have any cash to spend. "People keep asking me about bringing in new faces but there is not a lot there for me to bring the people in," he said. "At the moment I have got to work with what I have got and it is up to me to work with what I have got. It is down to me to make sure they produce on Tuesday." 'I don't think we were ever going to hurt them' 

The former Reading hitman admitted Town had never looked like scoring against a side that had failed to win in their last ten matches. Williams said: "We looked lethargic and although we had a lot of possession I don't think we were ever going to hurt them. "We've picked up a couple of good results in recent matches but we let ourselves down against Oldham. "These are the places where you've got to come and get results and we've not done that. "I don't know if we thought it was going to be easy because they were on a poor run. "We had comfortable possession but we just didn't hurt them. We looked like a team that was never going to score." Williams almost gave Town the lead shortly before the interval, racing on to Gary Alexander's flick and thumping a low shot just wide of the post. "That was probably our one and only chance," said Williams. "Quite a few people thought it was in and I was one of them. "I hit it well enough but just couldn't get it on target. Apart from that we didn't create anything."

Williams was particularly frustrated by the referee in the second half. "He was trying to be your friend but he kept giving decisions against us, while the opposition strikers were getting away with backing into our defenders. "I was getting wound up but I had to bite my tongue." Goalkeeper Bart Griemink offered no complaints about the result. He said: "It was a very disappointing display against a team below us in the league. "The second half was very poor. We didn't work very hard and didn't keep the ball very well. "Besides Martin Williams' shot we didn't really create any chances and they grabbed the crucial goal." The Dutchman said it was important to start again at the Vetch Field tomorrow night. "We're still struggling to find consistency but there are lots of games coming up so we've got to pick ourselves up again and get on a roll," Griemink said.

Adam Willis saw a doctor after limping off with a knee injury. "I thought I had done something a lot worse but it has died down now," said Willis. "It was actually Alan Reeves who caught me with his studs. It just caught a nerve and I was in real agony for a while. "Matt and Gary also hobbled off so it was a bad day all round." Willis said the defeat was just what Town deserved. "We came here looking to get a result because they've been on a bad run," he said. "We thought if we kept on top of them we could take all three points but it never really happened for us. "Whether we were waiting for each other I don't know. We've just got to put it right ourselves." Willis said there was some debate over Craig Dudley's goal. "The linesman flagged first and I think a lot of the boys thought it was offside. But the referee never blew his whistle, the lad struck it well and it ended up in the back of the net. We can have no real complaints," he said. Andy Williams came on as a first half substitute for Matt Hewlett. "It wasn't good for Matt to get injured but I was obviously pleased to get my chance," he said. "Unfortunately we didn't pass the ball about or threaten their goal but at least we can get this result out of our system at Swansea."

Oldham 1, Town 0: When Colin Todd admitted this week that his young side was not good enough to get promoted, he had this type of result in mind. Town arrived in Lancashire firing on all cylinders with only one defeat in five games. They faced an Oldham side which had only won once all season and conceded more goals than any other side in the league. It was a game Town should have won. The fact they left a soggy Oldham with nothing was more down to their lack of consistency than to the home team's efforts. Todd kept faith with the same side for the third match running, but they were a shadow of the side which had matched Wigan and beat Oxford in their last two games. There was little penetration and the passing was crab-like, fine going side to side, but try going forward and everything fell apart. Teams pushing for promotion will look to pick up points at Oldham. Anyone harbouring ambitions to play in Division One next year will be able to embark on a decent run of results and climb the table.

Town have not, cannot and that is why Todd believes they will not be challenging where it counts come May. It was a miserable day full stop. Steady rain fell throughout the entire 90 minutes made for a difficult encounter. But that was no excuse for Town, who never really moved beyond second gear, once again relied on the good form of keeper Bart Griemink who made one outstanding save from Tony Carss in the second half and showed agility and assurity with the wet ball. He was called into action after only two minutes. The slippery surface caused indecision in the Town defence as an Alan Reeves mistake let in Craig Dudley down the right but his drive across goal was well held by the big Dutchman. Five minutes later and it was Keith O'Halloran who put his keeper under pressure when his poor back pass let in Dudley again, but this time the striker's effort hit the side netting as he attempted to toe-poke it around Griemink. Town did finally wake in the 10th minute. Danny Invincible burst through the heart of the Oldham defence before being up-ended on the edge of the box.

The free-kick was rolled into the path of O'Halloran, but his low drive was held by keeper Gary Kelly at the second attempt. It was Town's best period of the game as a good move down the left created a chance for Matt Hewlett, but his strike from the edge of the box went wide of the right hand post. A minute later and Town earned their first corner. David Duke's cross was cleared to the edge of the box but O'Halloran fired a volley into the ground and the ball bounced narrowly wide. Todd was forced to make a change in the 26th minute as Matt Hewlett hobbled off with a knee injury and Andy Williams entered the fray. David Duke moved in alongside O'Halloran in the heart of midfield. Town's best chance of the match came in the 36th minute when a long ball from O'Halloran was flicked into the path of Martin Williams who raced on, shrugged off two defenders, and fired his shot goalwards. The ball seemed to be nestling in the back of the net and had the Town fans cheering from behind Griemink's goal. But, in fact, it had missed by the narrowest of margins and bounced back onto the net off the advertising boards. A minute later and it was the Oldham fans who thought they had scored.

Paul Smith rose highest to power a header past Griemink but the goal was disallowed for off-side. Griemink was by far the busier of the two keepers as half-time approached. First he was forced to tip over a looping header from Oldham striker Dudley and then he held onto a long-range effort from Tony Carss. The home team's pressure continued after the break as Griemink dived full-length away to his left to palm away another low shot from new-boy Carss. David Duke tried a long-range strike which was held at the second attempt by Kelly, but Town were struggling to create anything which could threaten the Oldham defence. Griemink on the other hand was under the cosh. He did well to block a powerful point-blank shot from Carss in the 50th minute and was lucky to see Smith fire the rebound high over the bar. Todd made a swift second half change introducing Grazioli for Alexander in the 52nd minute. However, it was Oldham who continued to create the openings in front of goal, Dudley heading straight at Griemink after 63 minutes. As they kept up the pressure, Town's resistance finally broke.

Referee Baines played an advantage after Sol Davis fouled Neil Adams on the right. The ball was fired in low by Carss and Dudley intercepted, swivelled, and fired a powerful strike past Griemink to give them a 73rd minute lead. Oldham were on fire and Dudley went close to adding a second when he ran at Reeves before bending a low shot around the left post. The only blip on Oldham's day was the sending off of goalscorer Dudley with a minute remaining after picking up his second yellow card. But it was too late for Town to make any kind of impact and they left Lancashire as the losers. It was only left for Alan Reeves to pick up a late booking after tripping Smith to complete a thoroughly depressing afternoon for the boys in red.