[madsteve]

90 Minutes From the PL

Had a great trip to Brighton. We might not have played that great but we are now just 90 minutes from the PL.

Arrived nice & early so had lunch on the beach next to the pier and had a little nap in the sun. Amazing how good cheese & tuna crepes followed by an ice cream taste in the sun. Felt confident as I have for the last couple of months. We then had a quick drink in Lewes before taking the train to the ground (transport included in ticket price).

There is a lot Wednesday could learn from Brighton off the pitch. Firstly, the walkway round the ground has an exhibition of the Club's "Magic Moments" which must inspire the home fans as well as being interesting to visiting fans. However the big one is how they use the jumbo screens & music to build up the crowd. By kick off, they had cranked up the atmosphere and the home players responded.

The opening half was almost a constant threat on the Wednesday goal. CC went 442 and it left us hopelessly exposed in CM. Lopez & Lee were non-existent and Bannan was marginalised in the left wing. Lees & Loovens had no shield so were exposed to runners all half while both full backs struggled and FF & Hooper barely saw the ball.

Knockaert hit the post and a Brighton goal seemed inevitable & duly came when Dunk converted From Bruno's flick. Somehow we equalised against the run of play when Wallace's cross was missed by everyone and it nestled in the corner of the net. It was all hands to the pumps and we held out to half time with Loovens & Lees outstanding with a series of blocks and Westwood doing a magnificent job between the sticks.

Hutchinson replaced Lopez at half time and we pretty much coasted through the second half. There were a few moments that raised the pulse with harsh bookings for Wednesday players while Brighton (Kayal in particular) seemed to be able to commit assaults with minimal punishment. It was really down to poor refereeing than anything more sinister.

Quite a few players played below par, particularly in the first half, but I feel that CC's formation didn't help several of them.

Westwood - 9
Hunt - 6
Lees - 8
Loovens - 8
Pudil - 6
Wallace - 7
Lopez - 4
Lee - 5
Bannan - 5
FF - 7
Hooper - 6
.................................
Hutchinson - 7
Helan - 6
Nuhiu - 5

Stat Attack:

Goals: 1 - Wallace

Assists: 1 - Hunt

Touches: 64 - Westwood, 41 - Hunt, 40 - Lees, 39 - Lee, 37 - Pudil, 36 - Bannan, 33 - FF, 32 - Loovens, 26 - Wallace, 25 - Hooper, 22 - Hutchinson, 18 - Nuhiu, 12 - Helan, 11 - Lopez

Tackles: 5 - Hutchinson, 4 - FF, 3 - Nuhiu, 2 - Loovens, Pudil, 1 - Hunt, Wallace, Lopez, Lee, Bannan

Interceptions: 5 - Loovens, 4 - Lees, 2 - Pudil, Lee, 1 - Hunt, Wallace, Lopez, Bannan, Hutchinson

Clearances: 16 - Lees, 13 - Loovens, 10 - Pudil, 7 - Hunt, 4 - Westwood, Lee, 2 - Wallace, 1 - Hutchinson, Nuhiu

Attempts: 2 - Wallace, Nuhiu, 1 - Pudil, Bannan, FF, Hooper

Attempts On Target: 1 - Wallace, Bannan, Hooper

Key Passes: 2 - FF, 1 - Hunt, Lee, Bannan, Hooper

Dribbles: 4 - FF, 2 - Lee, Helan, 1 - Hunt, Loovens, Bannan, Hooper, Nuhiu

Dispossessed: 2 - Nuhiu, 1 - Hunt, Wallace, Lee, Bannan, FF, Hooper, Helan

Bad Control: 3 - Lee, 2 - Helan, 1 - Wallace, FF, Hooper, Nuhiu

Crosses (Accurate in brackets): 1 - Hunt (0), Wallace (0), Lee (1), Bannan (0), FF (1),

Passing Accuracy (Total Passes in Brackets):

94% - FF (16), 85% - Hutchinson (13), 83% - Bannan (29), 80% - Lee (20), 78% - Lopez (9), 70% - Hooper (20), 69% - Wallace (16), 55% - Loovens (9), 53% - Lees (17), 52% - Hunt (27), 50% - Nuhiu (8), Helan (4), 32% - Westwood (37), 27% - Pudil (15)

Wembley tickets secured. Hopefully I am in good health and can enjoy a Wednesday victory & promotion.