BRITISH GAS BUSINESS SOUTHERN PREMIER LEAGUE SAT 16TH FEB 2008, KO 3PM

Cirencester Town 1 Rugby Town 2

With key defender Paul Cochlin out with a broken toe, Lee Molyneux having to be risked in defence after coming off injured last week and forward Ashan Holgate having to go through a pre-match fitness test it was not the best set up for Cirencester in this 'must win' match.

Mr Viveash decided to pair Alex Stanley and Molyneux in the middle of the defence, took a risk in putting Andy Chapman at left back, retained Michael Jackson in centre midfield, and played Jon Else in a rare start wide on the right with Shax going up the left in front of Chappo. Steve Robertson went to the bench with Snaky Stanley pairing with Ashan Holgate up top.

As the match unfolded his plans went awry with his team failing to control the ball, find their forwards with passes, or control the midfield and subdue the Rugby attacking threat.

In contrast, Rugby's Rod Brown had a full squad from which to pick and he put his best line-up onto a firm, level pitch. He challenged his team to show him that they were worthy of his belief. They paid off, redoubled in spades, and Ciren struggled to stay in the match from the off.

Rugby had Rory Curtis, loaned from Walsall, up front. Paired with the speedy and dangerous David Stone they gave Lee Molyneux and Alex Stanley constant problems with their pace and ability to come off the defender to hold the ball and set up support play.

Within five minutes, Rugby had exposed the vulnerability up the left side of the Ciren defence, with the lightning paced Cameron Jones skating beyond Andy Chapman and Alex Stanley to send in dangerous crosses.

That the two Rugby strikers failed to put a shot on target was due entirely to sterling defensive work by Molyneux and Ciren skipper Chris Collins. But, Ciren were under constant pressure and their midfield and forwards were signally unsuccessful in holding the ball and turning the pressure onto Rugby.

Jon Else, wide on the right, was the one exception. Comfortable in possession and showing for passes, his pace and control was making Stephan Morley scamper to cover the threat. Unfortunately, every time Else passed inside, Michael Jackson who was out of sorts today at once lost possession as Tom Breward and Scott Musgrove swarmed onto him and snuffed out the Ciren forward momentum.

Much of that was lost anyway when it became very clear, right from the off, that sending air balls upfield would only play into the hands of the vastly experienced Craig Herbert. He was always on the nudge into the back of Ashan Holgate, who was being poorly served with some hit and hope lumps forward and never able to get himself into space to make something of his ability to collect, control and go at the defence.

it wasn't helping the Ciren cause that Snaky was having one of his frustrating days, getting to the ball but then turning into trouble or being forced to go away from the defender and lose the momentum in the attack. We kept losing it. And Rugby kept snaffling the ball, with Jacko being swarmed on and overwhelmed in midfield and unable to stem the tide sweeping onto the Ciren defence.

Twice the speedy youngster Cameron Jones scurried onto wide right passes and fired over crosses after scooting past first Andy Chapman then Alex Stanley. First time, he was too close to the safe hands of Matt Bulman. Second time, Chris Collins did very well to nick the ball off the head of David Staff as the cross looped in under the Ciren bar.

To the surprise, and delight, of the sparse crowd on a cold day Ciren took the lead on 25 minutes against the run of play. Jon Else was first to a lobbed cross from Andy Chapman and, with a one touch pass, put Michael Jackson in on the edge of the Rugby penalty area.

Twice he tried to force the ball through to Holgate, free in the box. Twice it was blocked. But when the bounce of the ball then gave him the chance of a shot he buried it emphatically beyond veteran Rugby 'keeper Richard Anstiss from 18 yards.

That should have settled Ciren. Indeed, they briefly held the upper hand and pressed forward on both flanks. But when Ashan Holgate broke clear on the left on 35 minutes and looked up, to his dismay his strike partner Nick Stanley was not coming to meet his pass but instead running away off the ball into nowhereland. The golden chance was gone.

Neither Nick Stanley or Ashan Holgate had made Craig Herbert or Delroy Gordon in the heart of the Rugby defence work very hard so any openings that did come needed to be exploited.

Snaky was woefully amiss moments later when, after yet another clever piece of passing by Jon Else to open the defence, Collins slid a ground pass up to Stanley on the edge of the Rugby penalty area.

Instead of coming to collect and control Snaky was instead moving away from the ball and his first touch lost control. Herbert stepped in, calmly slotted the ball upfield to Curtis and he passed, first touch, into the gap in the middle of the Ciren defence.

David Stone, already aware that he had the drop on Alex Stanley for pace, was playing on his shoulder and was away, romping clean through and scoring comfortably past the exposed Matt Bulman.

Worse was to follow. On 39 minutes a left wing cross should have been routinely cleared. But instead it looped up in the air off a miscued defensive header and Scott Musgrove was left clear, five yards out, to net comfortably with the Ciren defence wrongfooted.

Mr Viveash changed his team at half time, removing Nick Stanley for Steve Robertson and, much to the surprise of the crowd, Jon Else for Dan Wallington. He moved Andy Chapman from left back to allow the Ciren playmaker to advance without needing to worry about the pacey Cameron Jones behind him.

Else had misplaced some passes first half, often because his team mates were not moving (reacting? thinking?) fast enough to collect defence splitting passes. Maybe Mr V thought he had to be sacrificed to allow Wallo on to give Chappo licence to move upfiled.

But it did appear to some that having taken off the out of sorts Stanley it might have been an option to put Else into the middle with Nathan doing the down and dirty stuff beside him and replace Jackson. But, we were only on the sidelines, chuntering and worrying about what our team was doing without knowing who had taken a knock or what the plan was for the second half.

Ciren did plunge forward more in hope than expectation, with Robertson manful and energetic in trying to make something of the service coming forward. Twice, three times he very nearly worked Ashan in. Though it looked as if Craig Herbert was having one of those wonder days when everything comes onto your head. Or falls to your boot. Or, if all else fails, the ref does not see your nudge on the attacker.

Whatever. We were getting nowhere, Rugby were playing on the break and loving it. Indeed, were it not for the efforts of Matt Bulman in stopping shots from Stone and Curtis the game would have been over long before the end. When he was beaten, after Jones had scorched up the wing and presented Stone with a clear shot, Alex Stanley was well placed to kick off the line.

Ciren's only chance of what would have been an undeserved equaliser came on 77 minutes when Anstiss got up to tip a testing free kick from Andy Chapman over the top.

Wallo was keeping his passes on the park, playing with an accuracy and calmness that did him credit. And Chappo was responding to the service, striving to get past Stringfellow and pop balls into the middle. Sadly, Hail Mary Herbert was having one of those days and making himself first to each and every one of them.

Though twice, Chappo's legitimate darts for the pass were halted by a lino who could not see that when the pass had been laid by Wallo the defender was still goal side of the attacker.

Otherwise, it was more a matter of huff and puff and hope for Ciren. On a day such as this, it was never going to be enough. And we subsided limply to a loss that must have infuriated Mr V, watching his team be second to most of the midfield balls and time after time sending passes to the surprised but nevertheless ruthlessly grateful Rugby midfield. Play like that on Monday and The Chipp will wreck our goal difference.

Cirencester: Bulman, Collins (c), Chapman, Haisley, Molyneux, A Stanley, Else [Wallington 45], Jackson, Holgate [Hunt 72], N Stanley [Robertson 45], Shaxton
subs: Etheridge, Bailey

Ref: Mr M Amphlett, Kidderminster I was not impressed. Far too often he plain got his decisions wrong on simple things like deflections for goal kicks or throw ins. Nothing world shattering but it winds players up when a ref gets it wrong more often than not.

Att: 139 very disappointing. Not too many (grateful) Rugby fans today but they sure enjoyed an unexpected but very welcome result after 5 losses on the bounce. While the very much so hard core Ciren fans were bitterly disappointed with their own expectations raised by some very positive recent displays.

Ciren MoM: Not many names mentioned today. Alex Stanley for sticking to his last, though he was getting a towsing off the sparky Stone. And Lee Molyneux who got the majority of the votes from a somewhat subdued clubhouse.