Cobblers frustrated as odds begin to pile up

Northampton Town 0-0 Torquay United
League Two
Monday, April 5th 2010

Frustrating is putting it mildly. Not only the fact that one goal in this stale mate would have put us into fourth place but that our top scorer hobbled off and we failed to find a way past a stubborn Torquay side all added up to a very annoying afternoon at Sixfields on Bank Holiday Monday. Once again with the highest attendance of the season so far, we failed to produce a performance that merited three points and ultimately paid the price by falling back outside the playoffs.

Adebayo Akinfenwa was the main talking point in the first half of a windy encounter here...the big man looked like he could continue after a challenge by a visiting defender but ten minutes before the break and he was trudging off. It takes a lot to keep Bayo down so this one must be pretty serious and a worrying sign ahead of the final run in.

Torquay had said wind with them in the opening 45 and were more settled than the Cobblers going into the break with Jason Steele the busier of the two goalkeepers but we at least came to life a little in the second half.

Liam Davis struck the cross bar from distance before Steve Guinan, Bayo’s replacement, had an effort saved by Scott Bevan in the Torquay goal. Bevan was called into action again from Davis with twenty minutes to play as he palmed away the set piece from the Cobblers midfielder.

Luke Guttridge curled over in the last attempt of the game but it was two points dropped in the end with the Cobblers failing to find a way through. With other results going against us, we can forget about third place and focus solely on the playoffs from now on.

It’s a tough, tough run with with Notts County, Rotherham and Rochdale in the next three games and despite the hard work to get incredibly involved in this playoff hunt, it will be even more impressive should we climb into the top seven after these three games. Bayo’s injury doesn’t help things and the likes of Steve Guinan and Stephen O’Flynn need to stand up and be counted if the big man is ruled out.

There is still a carrot to bite for though and if the Cobblers do anything, we do it when the odds are stacked against us as right now they very much are.