Cherries picked off by improving Town

Northampton Town 2-0 AFC Bournemouth
League Two
Saturday, August 22nd 2009


Something strange has happened. Northampton Town have won two games in a row in what seems an unprecedented step. The win at Accrington on Tuesday night was good enough to salvage something from a stuttering start to the season but this win over a Bournemouth side who had previously won all three of their opening games was more impressive for the all round team performance that matched the result.

Naming an unchanged side, Stuart Gray knew that the pressure was still on him but the Cobblers boss didn’t have to wait long for the opening that eased the pressure on his side, looking for a home win to lift their spirits even more after Tuesday’s big win in midweek. Ben Marshall collected the ball from Steve Guinan on the right hand side and delivered a good cross that Bayo Akinfenwa had no trouble in converting from close range.

The Cherries were stunned into action, having conceded their first goal in the league this season and Mark Molesley forced a save out of Chris Dunn. The Cobblers were forced into a worrying double change with injuries continuing to mount as John Curtis and Akinfenwa replaced by Alex Dyer and Billy McKay.

Marshall shot over after a bursting run from midfield before Sammy Igoe tested Dunn again at the other end with a curling effort. In an increasingly entertaining first half, Brett Pitman hit the bar for the visitors before Steve Guinan shot wide after good build up play.

Going into the break two goals up gave the Cobblers a good base for the second 45 and Dean Beckwith came close to making it two following a free kick before Billy McKay also went close following yet another long run from Marshall, once again coming into his own on the League Two stage.

With ten minutes to go, McKay thought he had found the breakthrough of the second goal but his effort, a rebound after a Guinan shot, was ruled out for offside. But the Cobblers would get the second and seal an impressive win against a strong Bournemouth side as McKay forced a save out of the visiting keeper only for Marshall to seal a good performance by slotting home the rebound.

As the final whistle went, the Cobblers fans rose to appreciate a performance that was as improved as we could have hoped after the first three games of the season. An all round team effort to take into next week’s game at newly promoted Burton Albion and the fact that no side in League Two has won all four games can give us terrific hope that we can still make a good start to this campaign.