I think Wayne Burnett summed up the story of Sunday’s game against Luton pretty well, when he said it was a game of thin margins.

When Ashley Hemmings is one on one with the keeper at 1-0 down, if he scores (and he really should) then who’s to say we don’t go on to win the game.  I think the goal would have lifted everyone and I am sure a sense of belief would have enveloped the team and the majority of the home fans.  At the very least we may have got a draw.

Alas it wasn’t to be as instead of slotting the ball under or past the onrushing keeper, Hemmings decided he would hit the ball with the outside of his left foot and consequently put the ball wide of the goal and miss a golden chance.  I am not going to knock our left winger but sometimes I wish he would just do the simple things instead of going for the spectacular all the time.

Hemmings’ disappointment was plain for all to see at the end of the game.  The worse thing about the miss of course was that straight from the resulting goal kick, Luton go up the other end a make it 2-0, then of course the game is ultimately over as a contest.

Despite the disappointments, I did see a couple of positives from the game.  I thought the partnership of Dunne and Labadie bodes well for the future, I thought the two of them gave us a bit more in midfield and showed at times what we had been missing.  I was also pleased to see Jack Connors back in the side, I like Jack and think he has a lot to offer us, he is also one of the only players in the team who seems to know how to throw a ball forward at a throw in.

Although we didn’t create an awful lot, I thought we definitely looked stronger as a group, which again was a lot to do with having Dunne and Labadie in midfield.  My biggest criticism of the game on Sunday though, is pretty much the same as every week and it regards the person who is meant to be our most creative player.  Ashley Chambers.  I noticed in the game and have noticed it in other games that a lot of the time he is just walking about.  I am not being funny but if my son plays on a Sunday in his under 11’s and he is just walking about like Chambers does, he gets an earful.  Sunday though for me he looked so ineffective, in fact I don’t remember seeing him run once.  The worst thing is though that when our midfielders are looking for someone to pass to, Chambers is too busy standing behind a defender, when he should be busting his balls trying to get the ball or looking to find pockets of space, instead he looks like he is out for an afternoon walk after his Sunday lunch or playing peek-a-boo with his niece or nephew.  In over 50 appearances for this club, I reckon I have seen Chambers have about 5 good games.  Even when he scored those two goals at home against Mansfield recently, at no point when he was closing in on goal did I have any confidence in him scoring.  Maybe he gives us something that I can’t see, but for me I just think there has to be better options in the squad.

I ventured over to Victoria Road on Tuesday night to watch the Essex Senior cup tie with Basildon.  I was hoping to see some of the young’uns in this game but found out before kick off that the Youth team had an important Fa Cup match later in the week so they weren’t risked for this one.  Instead I watched the players who weren’t involved at the weekend or only partly, also I got to see another 45 minutes of Joss Labadie, which included a very well taking goal.  The game may have been against inferior opposition (although Basildon coming into this game had won their last 7) but is always nice to see your team score 6 goals without reply.  For 2/3 of the game we played with 3 at the back, something I have been hoping we would do for some time, although it wasn’t a conventional back 5 with wing backs, it is still good to know the team work on different formations in training.  Although you shouldn’t take too much from the game itself, as Warren Hackett said afterwards, none of the players that played did their chances of playing Saturday any harm at all.

Jake Mulraney showed he has some good attributes during the game, the winger showed he can play with both feet, cut inside, assist and he has pace to burn.  In my opinion he could fit nicely into a number ten role, if our current number ten wasn’t perhaps having the best of times in that position at the moment.  Joe Widdowson got 45 minutes which was important and McClure managed to bag himself a hat-trick which will no doubt give him some confidence.  There was one youth player who did make an appearance and that was Goldy Capela.  The young striker has recently been at Erith and Belvedere were he scored 5 goals in only 8 appearances.  During his 30 minute cameo he managed an assist and a goal, I wonder how long it will be before this young lad is on the fringe of the first team squad.

So despite the disappointment of another league defeat and the fact we are rock bottom of the football league, Saturday sees us start our Fa cup campaign with a home game against Morecambe, or as it has been in the last couple of seasons, the Kevin Ellison show.  Hopefully we can play the right formation and the right personnel on Saturday and we can get a positive result.  I am hopeful we can sneak a scrappy 1-0 win and just knick it with a Joss Labadie strike being the difference.

I would like to see us play a 5-3-2 formation but I suspect we will stick with 4-2-3-1.  Dunne may not be eligible for the game at the weekend, so Wayne may have to put in an extra midfielder to compensate.  Obviously I would like to see Chambers omitted from the line up and if we play a number 10, I would like to see Jodi or Jake Mulraney play in the free role.

As always I am hopeful for Saturday and will be 100% behind the boys, no matter who Wayne decides to select.

Lets hope this weekends game proves to be a pleasant distraction from the league and we can put ourselves in the hat for the second round draw on Monday night.

Up the Daggers!!