Q: What do you get if you have two bad defences and two offences that are spoiling to explode?
A: Bolton v Portsmouth
No sooner had I plonked my backside on our comfy, oversized couch than Bolton had taken a 1-0 lead with a nicely taken goal by Matt Taylor. Two minutes later and the lead was doubled as Ricardo Gardner pumped the ball into the Portsmouth goal (even though there was a player in a blatantly offside position).
I believe it was at this point that Portsmouth’s bus rolled into the Reebok’s car park to drop the team off!
Tony Adams arrived to have take his seat, looked up at the scoreboard and realised he was in a 2-0 hole. His veins were a-poppin’ in his neck, every other word began with “F” and his players were listening to ….. his assistant!
Bolton could have been four or five goals to the good if they had taken their chances. David James made two excellent saves in the first half but really should have done better with the ones that went in too.
Weak defending seems to be contagious as Bolton missed two headers in the attack that saw Peter Crouch pull one back for Pompey. Niko Kranjcar used the outside of his boot to curl in a deep cross to the back post where Crouch heads back across goal. All the pundits say Krancjar’s cross was pure brilliance, I say it was a cross from a player who only uses his left foot to stand on.
When the break arrived the score was 2-1 to the Wanderers but could easily have been
4-1.
Bolton came out after the break and continued to take the game to Portsmouth. Portsmouth stayed in the dressing room for the most part with Bolton’s keeper, Jaaskelainen, being charged for a ticket as he became a spectator in the second half. Word is that he had a blanket and a flask of Oxo with him as he “guarded” his goal.
James continued his mixed bag in goal at the other end with a couple more fine saves and a scuffed clearance that almost came back to haunt him.
Overall, the game was your good, old fashioned, English styled game with plenty of incidents and talking points. The referee let quite a bit slide, especially when it came to handing out cards, but that probably added to the fluidity of the game.
The English Premier League is great this season, here’s hoping it stays this way and games like this will do it more good than harm.
