A Dull Afternoon Brightened by Another Asprilla Goal

Waiting for the ball to drop

I had booked a ridiculously early train to get to Rotherham.  This booking became even more foolish when the Happy Valleys decided that the pre-match meet-up would be in Sheffield as the designated pub in Rotherham didn’t do food.  I was surprised to find that I wasn’t the only Watford fan on that train, although I didn’t join the others in starting on the beers at 9am.  If I had, I would have been incapable of walking by kick-off.  I arrived in Sheffield some time before the pub opened, so went for a wander through the city and arrived outside the pub to find the Happy Valleys waiting for the doors to open.  We were soon inside with some rather good beer.  The lunch of choice was a delicious steak sandwich which completely validated their decision to meet there.

When the time came, we took the train to Rotherham and the short walk to the ground guided by some very helpful police officers.  On arrival at the ground, there was a large queue for the one female steward who insisted on thoroughly searching every woman going in.  It was policy, apparently, no matter that many of us were on concession tickets.  She didn’t find anything in the time that I was queuing.

Sema and Koné prepare for a free kick

Team news was that Ismaël had made four changes from the defeat to Norwich with Sierralta, Asprilla, Kayembe and Pollock in for Livermore, Martins, Chakvetadze and the suspended Porteous.  So, the starting XI was Hamer; Lewis, Hoedt, Pollock, Dele-Bashiru; Koné, Kayembe, Sierralta; Sema, Rajović, Asprilla.

The first chance fell to the home side as Odoffin played the ball out to Kioso who broke forward before playing the return pass to his teammate whose shot flew well over the bar.  The next chance fell to Rinomhota whose effort flew wide of the target.  The first chance for the Hornets came following a corner, the ball came out to Asprilla whose cross was headed wide by Sierralta.  The Colombian was in action again soon after when he picked up the ball and went on a surging run forward before passing the ball out to Sema whose cross was blocked.  The next chance was a shot from the edge of the box by Asprilla that was deflected over the bar.  The home side then won a rather soft free kick that was met by the head of Kioso, but Hamer made the catch.  The Watford keeper was in action again soon after punching clear a dangerous shot from distance by Tiéhi.  The Hornets had a great chance to take the lead just before the break as Koné broke before releasing Rajović who played the ball out to Asprilla when a shot may have been the better option as Asprilla tried a return pass that was blocked, and the chance was gone.  There was a half chance for the Hornets in time added on at the end of the half when Kayembe found Dele-Bashiru on the edge of the box, but his shot flew well over the bar, so we reached half-time goalless after another half with little in the way of attacking play.

Celebrating Asprilla’s goal

At half time, the tannoy announcer mentioned the passing of Martin Patching, who was a native of Rotherham and whose brother is a season ticket holder.  May he rest in peace.

The Hornets came out for the second half much earlier than their hosts.  The guy behind me suggested starting without them and told me off for being pessimistic when I said that we still wouldn’t score.

The first ten minutes of the second half passed without incident and Ismaël decided to make a change bringing Ince and Chakvetadze on in place of Kayembe and Koné.  The Georgian was immediately involved playing a great ball into the box for Rajović, but the keeper was first to it.  The Hornets took the lead on 58 minutes, a corner was cleared to Chakvetadze whose shot was blocked, the ball fell to Asprilla on the edge of the box, we were right behind the goal so saw the ball fly into the net.  It was another gorgeous goal from the youngster whose celebration was joyous.  He was beaming as he punched the air before running back for the restart.  The first booking of the game went to Rinomhota for pulling Chakvetadze back as he tried to break again.

Hoedt and Lewis prepare for a free kick

The home side had a chance to hit back as Rinomhota broke forward and found Tiéhi whose shot was high and wide.  The next booking of the game went to Revan for a foul on Sema.  Rotherham then made a triple substitution with Hugill, Clucas and Eaves replacing Wyke, Tiéhi and Nombe.  The home side had a decent chance to draw level with a shot from Revan that ran across the front of the goal and just wide of the far post.  Ince then went on a quick break and crossed for Rajović whose header cleared the bar.  At the other end a header from Hugill flew wide of the target.  Hamer was booked for time wasting when taking the resultant goal kick.  With 15 minutes remaining, the Hornets made another change bringing Livermore on in place of Sema.  The hosts had a great chance to draw level from a free kick that Morrison headed down, Hamer and Pollock combined to make the block before Sierralta put it out.  Watford were struggling to clear the resultant corner and the ball bounced around the box until it reached Rathbone whose shot from just outside the area took a deflection and cleared the bar.  From the corner Morrison tried another header down, this one bounced over the bar and the Hornets could breathe again.  Rotherham made two further changes with Humphreys and Kioso making way for Cafú and Ferguson.

Dele-Bashiru and Rajović

The Hornets had a chance to grab a second when Livermore played a ball over the top for Ince, but the shot was wild and flew high and wide of the near post.  Ismaël made two late changes bringing Andrews and Dennis on in place of Asprilla and Lewis.  The hosts had a great chance to equalise when Ferguson played a lovely ball for Revan in the box, he pulled it back for Rinomhota whose shot was blocked.  From the resultant corner, the delivery from Clucas was headed wide by Odoffin.  There was six minutes of added time during which a poor ball from Ince led to the Hornets conceding a throw-in which was met by the head of Odoffin whose effort, thankfully, cleared the bar, so the Hornets left South Yorkshire with all three points.

It was another disappointing performance from the Hornets.  Ismaël said post-match that the win was the most important thing and, while it was great to end our losing streak, a bit of entertainment would have been appreciated.  What entertainment there was mostly came from Asprilla who scored his second wonder goal in a week.  As soon as the ball dropped to him, he (and we) knew that he was going to hit the net.  The first 55 minutes had been quiet, and things livened up when Chakvetadze came on, he isn’t afraid to take a defender on and the first booking of the game was a direct result of him being a menace.  Ismaël has explained that Andrews is fatigued, so he is limiting his game time, but I think we miss his attacking abilities as well. 

So, we are back at Vicarage Road on Saturday for the visit of Huddersfield.  Please, lads, give the home fans something to cheer.

Rampant Hornets Hit Five Against Rotherham

The minute’s silence

The journey to the game on Saturday was uneventful.  It felt chilly when I left the house, so I had donned several layers of clothing.  When I arrived in Watford, it was warm and sunny, so I felt over-dressed, but knew I would be grateful for the extra layers by the end of the game.

My pre-match routine was different to usual as I was meeting up with some of the We Allies to discuss a new initiative.  The venue was the wonderful Mad Squirrel.  As expected, the beer and pizza were excellent, and the company was delightful.

Having finally had a fully fit squad, it was a bit of a blow to hear that Bachmann and Sierralta were out due to injuries and Ngakia was unwell.  A couple of further tactical changes meant that Ismaël made five changes from the Huddersfield game with Hamer, Porteous and Andrews coming in for the stricken trio, Chakvetadze and Bayo made way for Koné and Rajović.  So, the starting XI was Hamer; Lewis, Hoedt, Porteous, Andrews; Koné, Kayembe, Livermore; Sema, Rajović, Asprilla.

Pre-match, there were a number of activities to mark Armistice Day, starting with a piper leading a Remembrance Parade and finishing with a lovely rendition of Abide with Me, a minute’s silence and The Last Post.

Celebrating the first from Rajović

The first chance of the game fell to the visitors as Porteous failed to stop an attack, thankfully the cross evaded the head in the box.  The first chance for the Hornets was a great cross from Koné that was just too high for Rajović.  The Hornets took the lead after 10 minutes, a lovely low cross from Sema was poked home by Rajović and the nerves were settled.  The Hornets threatened again as Koné went on a great run and played a lovely ball to Sema on the left, he broke into the box and unleashed a shot that Johansson got a hand to, and it was cleared for a corner.  The next chance for the Hornets came as Hoedt unleashed a low shot from distance that Johansson dived to save.  Rotherham were forced into an early substitution due to an injury to Clucas who was replaced by Cafú.  The substitute was involved immediately, hitting a powerful free kick that Hamer did well to punch clear.  The visitors had a decent chance to draw level just before half time, but the shot from Tiéhi flew just wide of the target.  There was then a pair of bookings for the visitors as Cafú was cautioned for a foul on Andrews and the manager, Matt Taylor, was booked for arguing about Cafú’s caution.  The visitors had a chance to draw level in time added on at the end of the half when Lembikisa hit a shot that flew wide of the far post.  But the Hornets went into the break two goals to the good as Sema went on another run down the left and beat the defender before crossing for Rajović whose shot found the roof of the net.  The half time whistle went to cheers and enthusiastic applause.  It had been a dominant half for the Hornets who had shown a lot more aggression going forward and were good value for their two goal lead.

Celebrating Kayembe’s strike

The visitors had the first chance of the second half as Rathbone intercepted a poor pass and broke forward, but his shot was terrible and flew wide of the target.  The visitors made a double substitution bringing Onyedinma and Ayala on for Revan and Morrison.  It didn’t do them any good as the Hornets scored a third a couple of minutes later as Porteous went on a great run before playing a lovely ball to Kayembe in the box, he turned and powered past Johansson.  Unusually for me, the goal brought a feeling of calm as a three goal lead surely meant that the Hornets would win the game.  The visitors looked to reduce the deficit as Cafú exchanged passes with Tiéhi before putting in a cross, Hamer got a hand to it and the ball eventually reached Bramall outside the box, his shot was deflected out.  Cafú took the resultant corner which fell to Ayala at the far post, he was under it, so his header was poor and missed the target.  The Hornets immediately broke down the other end where Asprilla hit a shot that flew well over the target.  The first booking for the Hornets went to Porteous for a foul on Hugill.  The second came soon after as Asprilla was booked for delaying the taking of the free kick.  That was his last involvement as he was replaced by Martins.  At the same time Livermore and Lewis made way for Chakvetadze and Ince.  The visitors made a double substitution with Kelly and Odoffin coming on in place of Peltier and Hugill.

Dele-Bashiru congratulates Martins after his goal

The next chance for Rotherham came as Bramall played a cross for Kelly, Hamer caught the shot, but he was offside anyway.  Then Martins exchanged short passes with Koné just outside the box, but the shot was well over the bar.  The visitors had a chance to pull one back as Rathbone shot from inside the box, Hamer parried it and it fell to Bramall whose shot was deflected for a corner.  The visitors were reduced to 10 men when Cafú picked up an injury after they had used all of their substitutes.  The Hornets made a further change bringing Healey on for Rajović who left the field to an ovation.  At this point, my attention was drawn to a group of about 6 children in the SEJ stand, who were standing and singing their hearts out for the Hornets.  It was lovely to see.  The fourth goal was a thing of beauty as Chakvetadze went on a great run before playing the ball out to Andrews who played a lovely ball for Ince who finished past Johansson.  Ismaël made a final substitution bringing Dele-Bashiru on for Koné.  The Hornets almost scored a fifth when Sema played the ball out to Martins, he crossed for Kayembe whose clever back heel rolled just wide of the post.  There was seven minutes of added time and another great chance for a fifth when Dele-Bashiru tried a shot that Johansson parried but Healey was unable to apply the finishing touch.  But we were not to be denied a fifth goal as Ince played the ball to Healey who needed time to control the ball so was closed down before shooting.  It seemed that the chance had gone, but he played a clever ball to Martins who found the net and then ran to the front of the Rookery to celebrate with the fans there.  The final whistle went to great celebrations.  The young cheerleaders in the SEJ had ripped their replica shirts off and were twirling them around their heads. 

Celebrating Rajović’s second

What a difference a week makes.  From utter tedium at Huddersfield to a thrilling goal fest at Vicarage Road.  The Hornets had dominated both games against poor opposition, but the difference came with the attacking intent shown.  Huddersfield had set up to defend, but I felt that the Hornets didn’t press them enough.  Against Rotherham there were plenty of willing runners who got behind the defence and caused problems.  King Ken was one, but it was also great to see Andrews back making surging runs.  Rajović had a great day at the office.  He can be invisible when there is no service, but he was perfectly placed for both of Sema’s crosses and is the goal poacher that we needed.  Hamer didn’t have a lot to do, but coped well with everything that Rotherham threw at him, which was good to see given how little he has played of late.

So, we go into the international break after a 6 game unbeaten run and are now looking up the table rather than down.  But, more importantly, the football was entertaining.  More of that please, lads.