With such a big game on the horizon Saturday (last game of the season, 5 of us scrapping for 4 play-off places) I guess the final of the Berks & Bucks Senior Cup at Wycombe Wanderers' Adams Park on a Tuesday night was always going to be a bit of an anti-climax. I always seemed to be fairly on my own in not wanting it at a league ground, I still think you would get a better cup final atmosphere at one of the two counties non-league grounds...
So, let's not give this post a big build up. We lost. Exactly ten years after we played out a 0-0 draw with Maidenhead United in the same final on the same ground, before losing on penalties, we played out a 0-0 draw with Wycombe Wanderers in the same final on the same ground, before losing on penalties. I guess being an England and Chesham fan I have come to accept the end of extra-time as a realisation of defeat, albeit prolonged defeat with the inevitable penalties heartbreak still to come.
For this particular final the penalties had a little added spice as the linesman managed to turn it into such a farcical embarrassment for the competition. The linesman's first interference came when he ruled that Shane had moved off his line when he made the first save of the shoot-out. I'm not going to pretend to have been watching precisely, but there was certainly no sign of him moving any more than any other goalkeeper ever does during a penalty. The retaken spot kick is scored.
After exactly the same thing had happened in the League Cup semi-final at Banbury just a few weeks earlier, the sense of injustice and inevitability began to set in. But that was nothing!
The next moment of controversy came when Bruce Wilson's penalty saw the keeper get his fingertips to the ball only for the ball to roll over the line and into the net - "Goal!" you would be justified in shouting, because, well, you had seen a goal... unless of course you were the linesman standing there giving everyone the impression that you really did not want to see Chesham win.
To be honest, I don't know what happened next. The referee came over, and then went and spoke to the other linesman and confusion reigned. The penalty was not retaken, but, you know what, I'm still not sure if that penalty went down as a score or not. How ironic it was that we were playing our first game for years in a stadium with a lovely electronic scoreboard, but there we were at the climax of the county's showpiece final - and nobody seemed to know the score!
From that moment of, what must have been, humiliation for the competition, everything went to pot. I had lost interest, too angry with the linesman that had spoiled what had been a good game to notice the fact that we probably took some pretty poor penalties to deservedly lose the shoot out. But, if the players felt half the emotion I did, then I'm not surprised they lost focus...and lost the game.
Even when the final goal went in, nobody seemed sure if it was the winner or not; even the referee seemed to have to check something. It really was laughable, as was the fact that the officials had supporters singing the circus theme tune as they went up to collect their medals. Priceless.
The final itself had been a good game, we played some excellent football, without really resulting in as many chances on goal as the football warranted.
Off the pitch, I know the playing surface was good and I'm sure the dressing rooms were really nice, but this really did not have the feel of a cup final...more a pre-season friendly. It might just be me, and perhaps times may have changed, but my memories of Berks & Bucks Senior Cup finals are taking three supporters coaches and 800 fans to Abingdon, or filling the Chicken Run at Aylesbury as we beat Abingdon in a jovial atmosphere of balloons and ticker-tape...
In the boardroom/hospitality lounge there were scores of people enjoying the nosh and free bar, I confess that I grabbed a couple of chips and and onion bhajee on the way through, and a cup of coffee at half-time, but that's not what cup finals are all about...sorry, that shouldn't be what cup finals are all about.
Saturday is massive. Away to Leamington, probably needing something to guarantee a play-off spot, but it is in our hands. Indeed, if Oxford City fail to beat Frome tonight (which is possible, they had to play Monday as well - losing to Hemel) we go into the final game of the season knowing that a win will guarantee us second place and a home semi-final in the play-offs, and at home in the final if we win that...and we can beat anyone at home.
Shockingly, I won't be at Leamington. I'm off to Center Parks in Sherwood Forest with all the family to celebrate my Dad's 70th birthday...We have considered making the trek across country to the game, but have concluded it would not be right to leave what is not a cheap weekend for a large percentage of Saturday and if we get the results we want, Dad and I will be just as happy supping on a few celebratory pints in Sherwood Forest. If it all happens to go tits-up on the last day of the season, you know the last place I would want to be?
No comments:
Post a Comment