Issue 5: Still in our own hands..

As thrilling as the Watford game was*, the crucial fact coming out of the game is that we still have it all to play for, and that we still have control over our own destiny.

We keep saying it, but the next few games are vital, and momentum will be the all-important factor behind who gets a play-off spot and who doesn't.

Taking a point on Saturday when we looked a beaten side will be huge for the squad, who seem to have a belief about them that they can take a positive result from every game.

I was at the Watford game, my first since Arsenal, and the main thing I noticed about the game was how quickly we tried to get the ball to our wingers. Now, this is obviously a good ploy when you have a player of Elliott's quality, but the central midfield has to have the courage to pass the ball forward as well as sideways. We are grimly predictable at times with our play.


I was so pleased to see Robbie looking back to his impish best. Two great finishes from the bench showed us just what a class act he is and what a huge part he can play in the run-in. It was suggested this week that he may be better coming on as a subsitute, but it does seem like lunacy keeping a player of his talent warming the bench. If it keeps him as fresh as he looked on Saturday it might be a worthwhile idea for Owen Coyle, though, who thought we were magnificent.

I have to agree, on another day we could have won by four or five goals, it could have been another Sheffield Wednesday, or even a repeat of THAT Watford game.

It is impossible to talk about the match without mentioning the misses of Ade Akinbiyi. I love Ade as much as the next Claret, but he had a nightmare. He really should have had three or four goals easily. But Ade will bounce back as ever and probably surprise us all with some quality goals in the next couple of weeks.

It's off to Hull on Tuesday, not the most glamourous of places to visit (one letter away from Hell and all that), but it is the kind of place we must get a result to get in that coveted top six. With our away form, I'm confident we can go there and get at least a point.

To sign off for today, here's a reminder of Blake at his very best.




*Yes, I did link to myself. How egotistic am I?