29th December 1999     

Chronicle reports

ATHLETIC are confident of escaping Football League sanctions following their late arrival at Stoke City yesterday. The game at the Britannia Stadium had to be put back 45 minutes when the team coach got stuck in heavy traffic, a result of accidents on the M6 motorway. Although clubs can be fined for missing kick-off deadlines, Athletic will claim they were hit by an unavoidable delay. They left Boundary Park at noon for a match with a 3 pm start and are hoping Football League officials will look kindly on their appeals. Chief executive Alan Hardy said: "They have asked us to send our schedule for the journey, but the plans we had in place were more than adequate. "Unfortunately, one of the accidents happened only about a mile in front of us and we were stuck for an hour and 40 minutes. "We knew the delay could be quite serious, so we got in touch with Stoke just after 1 pm and told them we had no way of getting off the motorway. 

"The police, who were very helpful, eventually came to meet us and we got to the ground at about 3.25 pm. It was just a case of unforeseen circumstances." Athletic last missed the kick-off time in January when their coach broke down on the way to Fulham. They avoided any punishment, although, back in 1990, they were given a suspended fine for turning up late at West Brom. The supporters' coaches were also held up yesterday, while the delay caused an extra problem for certain members of Athletic's squad. Those waiting for over an hour at a pick-up point near the motorway warned that the game might have to be called off altogether _ due to frozen players! After a creditable 0-0 draw with the play-off chasers, manager Andy Ritchie said: "It's not the best of preparations when you only have a few minutes to change and warm up. "But we went out with the right attitude, just like at Fulham when the same thing happened there. "The game was a bit of a stalemate, but I thought the lads at the back did really well for us. "I thought beforehand that a draw would be a good result, so I'm pleased that we achieved it by battling very, very hard." 

LATICS DIG DEEP TO PRESERVE RECORD

Stoke City 0, Oldham Ath 0

ATHLETIC finally arrived for their match at the Britannia Stadium yesterday almost half an hour after the scheduled kick-off time. Most of the 13,709 who suffered the tedium which followed probably wish they hadn’t bothered turning up at all. Stoke had the best of it, but discipline and high endeavour ensured Athletic preserved one of division two’s most consistent recent records — they have now lost only three of their last 14 league games, including one out of eight away from home. Right at the death, they could even have snatched an unexpected matchwinner. Had the chance fallen to anyone but big Shaun Garnett, the hosts would surely have slumped to a surprise defeat to blow them further off course in their chase for a play-off place. Stoke were, by a comfortable margin, the more ambitious of the two teams. Most obviously in the first half, they looked forward where Athletic looked square, and were much more willing to throw bodies into the box. But, as most visitors to Boundary Park demonstrate, it is the prerogative of the away side to play for a point, especially when they are facing higher-placed opposition. Athletic were perfectly entitled to defend en masse — and, turgid though it became, they did so very well. Lee Duxbury did a fine job covering from midfield, while Garnett was the pick of a backline which was sometimes stretched, but rarely to breaking point.

As Stoke put on the pressure in the opening hour or so, Athletic’s only real outlet was Neil Adams, who beavered away tirelessly on the right of midfield. The former Stoke player enjoyed the wide open spaces of this splendid ground and was the man his team-mates looked to almost every time they went forward. In return for the favour of possession, Adams produced a number of useful, whipped crosses. Not many of them found their target but, when the strikers are outnumbered two or three to one, any success rate must count as an achievement. Apart from the service provided by Adams, the final ball was woefully weak. Athletic were restricted to avenues which usually turned out to be cul-de-sacs and, to what must count as their credit, they dragged Stoke into the same messy  malaise. As expected, Mark Hotte, who was banned for the previous match, was brought back in place of Paul Jones. But, having had only 20 minutes to prepare themselves after a coach journey of three-and-a-half hours, Athletic were nearly caught napping in only the fourth minute. When Paul Connor got away through the heart of defence, the visitors were thankful that it was Hotte who was doing the chasing. The speedy centre-back did just enough to knock the forward out of his stride and, as the home fans claimed Hotte was pulling back his man, Kyle Lightbourne’s follow-up shot was blocked close to the line.

It was a clear warning for Andy Ritchie’s side, who took a good half-hour to find any cohesion at all. Connor forged an another opening after escaping Hotte’s attentions, while Frode Kippe headed a golden chance wide after the linesman mysteriously ignored Athletic’s appeals for offside. When Kippe miscued in the 22nd minute, the only barrier to Stoke being in front was their own wastefulness. Except for Gary Kelly, that is. The Athletic goalkeeper made an agile stop to deny Mikael Hansson and was always quick off his line when Stoke tried to thread a pass through from midfield. All Athletic could find in reply was a Paul Rickers volley which whistled just wide from 20 yards. The front pairing of Mark Allott and Steve Whitehall were isolated against a solid home rearguard, receiving little support from behind. It was the same story at the start of the second half, with Stoke setting up camp in their opponents’ territory. Hansson, Lightbourne and Kevin Keen all tried their luck from distance and, although serious peril was being kept at arm’s length, Athletic needed something new in attack to offer more meaningful resistance. That meant the introduction of Craig Dudley, whose pace at least offered the chance to play over the top instead of purely into the strikers’ feet. John Sheridan’s cheeky chip brought a rare save from Gavin Ward but, even after Dudley’s arrival, the Stoke ‘keeper remained in dire danger of frostbite.

As Stoke became frustrated, an already mediocre match became plain dreadful. The pitch didn’t help, either. As the kick-off had been 45 minutes late, the surface became harder and icier as the freeze set in hard. With 86 minutes on the board, a goalless draw looked almost guaranteed. Yet, following a Sheridan-led breakaway, Athletic had the energy to produce their best opening so far. The midfielder’s pass out to the left sent sub Matthew Tipton galloping into the area. His angled shot was palmed away by Ward and there was no-one on hand to find the empty net as the rebound rolled across goal. Nicky Mohan’s header from a corner continued the late flurry of excitement before — a full three minutes into injury time — Athletic came desperately close to a clincher. Sheridan’s free-kick caused mayhem in the Stoke area and the ball finally fell to Garnett right in front of goal. The defender’s point-blank blast thundered into Ward’s stomach and, somehow or other, stayed exactly where it was.

OLDHAM ATHLETIC 1, SCUNTHORPE UNITED 1

Penalty appeals waved away as Dudley is booked for diving

LIKE the Christmas cracker that fails to go off with a bang, Athletic’s match against Scunthorpe didn’t quite provide the excitement it had promised. A bright opening between two teams who play passing football hinted that a treat was in store for the hardy souls who braved Boxing Day’s horrendous weather. Instead, the encounter fizzled out and became a disappointing, not to mention extremely damp, squib. Steve Whitehall set Athletic on their way in the first half when he grabbed his fifth goal of the season. But Chris Hope’s equaliser for Scunthorpe seemed to leave both sides content to avoid defeat as they strive to keep their heads above water in the lower reaches of the second division. Not that Hope’s 52nd-minute goal was the end of the day’s drama. The major talking point came just after the hour when Athletic brought on Craig Dudley in a bid to pep up their attack. Within seconds of replacing Mark Allott, Dudley used his lightning pace to streak clear of the visiting defence. He bore down on goalkeeper Lionel Perez and, as the Frenchman dived at his feet, took a spectacular tumble inside the area. To Athletic, it was a clear-cut penalty. Even though Dudley’s break-neck speed had made the challenge look far worse than it was, here was an unquestionable chance to regain the lead. But, to their fury, referee Peter Walton had other ideas entirely. r Walton awarded a free-kick to Scunthorpe and produced a yellow card for Dudley after seeing the striker’s plunge as a blatant example of diving.

The match was also notable for two debuts, neither of which the men concerned could have expected just a few short weeks ago. or Scunthorpe, Manny Omoyimni was making his first appearance after arriving on loan from West Ham. Omoyimni has been sent away for his own protection after failing to tell the Hammers he was cup-tied for their Worthington Cup quarter-final against Aston Villa — an almighty cock-up which has forced his club to replay the tie after winning it first time round. perhaps unfairly, the forgetful Nigerian is being blamed for the whole fiasco and, should West Ham now be knocked out, he is sure to be driven out of Upton Park. In the unlikely surroundings of a freezing cold day in Lancashire, Omoyimni did show the odd glimpse of his pace and talent. But, in truth, he didn’t know quite what to make of it all. The other debutant was Athletic’s Paul Jones, who began the season playing in the Unibond League for Leigh RMI. The 21-year-old came in for the suspended Mark Hotte and faced a baptism of fire on his belated league debut. Playing as one of three centre-backs, Jones usually found himself up against either the powerful Guy Ipoua or elusive winger Lee Hodges — a real test of his versatility. Though he sometimes committed himself too early in the tackle, the defender also made some crucial interventions to pull his side out of trouble.

He got stronger as the game wore on and, showing plenty of bravery and footballing nous, did enough to suggest he can make the giant leap into the second division. Omoyimni, Ipoua and Hodges ensured Scunthorpe were always likely to cause problems for Athletic, with the tiny Hodges proving the star of the show. The ex-West Ham man was a whirling dervish out on the left, cutting inside, jagging back out again and instinctively taking the most positive option he could. At times, Athletic looked pedestrian in comparison. Only Neil Adams was convincing when faced with a defender, while the front two of Allott and Whitehall were forced to spend too much time playing with their backs to goal. Once Athletic stamped some authority, they made more use of their re-introduced wing-backs and the two strikers benefited accordingly. Whitehall again played with intelligence, while Allott was more positive than in previous games at home. Yet it is now almost three months since the club’s leading marksman scored at Boundary Park. He who hesitates is lost. And Allott shied away from shooting chances when, away from home, he wouldn’t have thought twice. Scunthorpe went into a team huddle just before kick-off — either that or they were looking for someone’s contact lens — and they proceeded to make the first chance of the game. Athletic allowed Hope to find yards of space after Richard Logan’s long throw, but the skipper prodded badly wide when he should have at least hit the target. Athletic responded through Adams, who switched inside from the right and hit a piledriver which Perez — on loan from Sunderland and setting the tone for an eccentric afternoon — punched to safety. After 25 minutes, Hodges set off on a 60-yard dash which left the Athletic defence spread-eagled and shapeless.

He laid the ball off unselfishly, but Omoyimni’s extravagant shot flew wildly off target. At this stage, it was a cracking encounter. And Athletic should have exploited its open nature when Whitehall looked to have his ankles clipped as he rounded Perez. If the striker had gone down, it could well have been a penalty. Whitehall chose to play on and, after squeezing the ball across, saw his team-mates dither too long over a shot while the ’keeper was out of position. But the breakthrough did come after 31 minutes and it was no surprise that the in-form Adams was the man behind it. His accurate cross from the right was ideal for Whitehall, who leapt high to send an unstoppable header into the top corner from eight yards. Hard-working Scunthorpe, however, weren’t in the mood to accept defeat and their overall play warranted Hope’s equaliser seven minutes after the break. Hodges crossed from the left and Hope got above the home defence to steer his header beyond Gary Kelly from close range. Hope and Omoyimni both had chances to put the visitors in front while, at the other end, Athletic were raging at the controversy surrounding Dudley. Otherwise, as the rain turned to hail and the hail turned to snow, the match became a disappointing anti-climax. United ’keeper made contact with striker, claims frustrated Ritchie

SCUNTHORPE goalkeeper Lionel Perez DID make contact with Craig Dudley before the Athletic striker was booked for diving, Andy Ritchie claimed after the game. Referee Peter Walton accused Dudley of unsportsmanlike conduct, sparking a row which left Ritchie convinced his side had been robbed of a penalty when the score was 1-1. “Craig says Perez caught him before he went down,” the Athletic boss revealed. “The referee was the only person in the ground who saw it the way he did. In fact, Perez looked to be walking off the pitch because he thought he was going to be sent off. “It’s really frustrating because it’s another game we should have won anyway. “Mind you, Craig had a great chance to lift the ball over the ’keeper before it happened so he should have been looking to shoot, rather than go round him.” Ritchie admitted he was satisfied with a point but said his players needed to set their sights higher. He explained: “If they want to go into the New Year on a high, they should be looking to overtake the teams above them instead of fighting off the ones below. We keep hammering that home. “We should have beaten Scunthorpe, but I’ll say it again — we have to start putting our chances away. “We carved them open in the first half and we were defending easily against them. “I thought we’d cracked it because we were playing just like we do away from home. “They didn’t change their system but, in the second half, we did things differently and left ourselves exposed. “Scunthorpe had some good situations and, in the end, we needed a couple of last-ditch tackles from Paul Jones.” Ritchie thought Jones did well on his debut as he gradually got to grips with the demands of league football. “He started nervously, as you do, but got stronger as the game went on,” Ritchie added. “He put in some great challenges and, all in all, it was a good performance for a first outing.” Scunthorpe boss Brian Laws had mixed feelings after seeing his side hit back to earn a draw . “We didn’t cave in, we kept our discipline and we took the game to Oldham in the second half,” he said. “We were the better side after half-time so, although I’m pleased with a point, I’m disappointed it isn’t three.”