The Famous 6 in 8

1.  There aren’t many worse feelings in football than watching your team throw away a lead in the dying minutes and end up losing. Blues fans have experienced that agony twice in a month. It had been over twenty years since Waterford led in the final five minutes of a match and conceded two late goals to lose. The previous time was the infamous 2004 FAI Cup final. Cruelty knows no bounds. This time, it was made worse by being a Munster derby and on the back of seven weeks of losing. We can only hope that enough of the players share that pain and can use it to drive them to put an end to this torturous phase.

2.  Yet again, Waterford defended well for long periods only to have their performance defined by some horrendous moments. Andy Boyle returned to the starting line-up and was outstanding, particularly in the first half. He brought composure to the backline and played the percentages. The polar opposite has to be said about both goals conceded – both created by Cathal O’Sullivan who was sensational again. Navajo Bakboord dived in to an ill-judged and ill-timed tackle to give away the crucial penalty. There was absolutely no need for it. Then, Kacper Radkowski was bullied off the ball by the 18-year-old who coolly set up Kitt Nelson for the winning goal. A shrewd ex-player said to me last year that Radkowski “is big, but plays small” and that was never more true than in that moment. He is capable of much better than that.

 

 

3.  The goal that gave Waterford the lead was a perfect illustration of playing to their strengths – exactly the kind of move the team was built to make and where they can have more success in future. A quickly taken throw-in by Bakboord found Conan Noonan who took the ball past Greg Bolger and cut it back smartly for Thomas Lonergan to score with a real striker’s finish to the bottom corner. Quick movement, finding space, intelligent link-up play and attacking with speed and aggression. Getting in behind defenders is key and that’s something Waterford have done shockingly rarely this season. It’s one to build on in training this week. 

4.  The Block E Boys held up a banner that read “Twenty is Plenty” aimed at the €25 ticket price for Turner’s Cross. Costs are rising everywhere so clubs have to make decisions to balance their budgets, but I don’t agree with this one. People are struggling, their bills are skyrocketing and football is one joyful outlet. The League of Ireland is on the cusp of a major breakthrough so let’s not price people out of going.

The charge can’t be justified by supply-and-demand economics. There was a healthy 3,365 attendance, but the capacity of Turner’s Cross is 7,485. Premier Division tickets had remained pretty constant at €15 for almost twenty years so few would argue that a 33% rise to €20 wasn’t warranted, but a 66% rise is exorbitant and keeps families away from attending. Neither the facilities nor the view from the St Anne’s Terrace are worth that price-tag and the scrappy football on offer certainly wasn’t. 

 

 

5.  The Blues support was fantastic and deserved better than the sickening feeling they were left with by the final whistle. Four buses and dozens of cars brought 370 fans westwards. That’s excellent support on an Easter Monday when that number will still travel after such an ugly display on Friday and weeks of losing. They deserved better.

6.  The league table looks very bleak after yesterday’s seventh defeat in row. It’s Waterford’s longest losing streak in nineteen years and one of the worst runs of form in the entire history of the club. A win for Sligo Rovers tonight in Derry would send the Blues to the bottom of the league. That is very possible with the renewed confidence Sligo will have from their huge win at the RSC last Friday. Bohemians’ back-to-back wins have pulled them away from immediate danger and Drogheda United, a preseason favourite for relegation, remain top of the table and showing no signs of slipping.

It’s still such a tight league that a pair of wins can put a completely different complexion on things. Waterford will be outsiders in every game they play for the next couple of months, but that doesn’t mean they can’t win them. The staff and team need to come together and gut this out. There are enough quality players there to be able to put out a team that can play with passion and restore pride. The turnaround has to start this week.