Late wins for Wednesday and Posh, late horror for Leeds United...
07 October 2024 | Weekend Notes brings you the biggest stories, stats and insights from the EFL weekend.
● BIG STORIES ● CHEAT SHEET ● 5IVELIGHTS ● THE VIEW FROM ● FANTASY FOOTBALL ● WATCHING BRIEF ●
The toastie effect…
For some clubs, the EFL, that melting pocket of broiling heat, was all a simmer over the weekend, with managers red-carded, last-gasp wins, and mind-bending mistakes. For others, it was more circumspect, with 7 stone-cold 0-0 draws.
Does the contents of a Breville cheese toastie burn your mouth because it’s too hot? Or do you burn your own mouth by biting a smouldering sandwich contrary to all evidence of danger? Something to think about this Monday morning where, with an international break around the corner, we can do some evaluation before diving in.
🚨 Big Stories
A selection of decisive moments from across the EFL.
🏏 The [Square] Ball of the Century — Sunderland 2-2 Leeds — In every other parallel universe, Shane Warne never knocked down Mike Gatting’s leg stump and Leeds beat Sunderland 2-1. That isn’t because Leeds took more shots or posted better xG, although they did. No, in every other universe, Ivan Meslier takes the ball in his gloves and knocks it downfield with the last kick of the game to the shrill of the final whistle. However, after a match of “great advert” stuff, where both showed how slick the Championship can be, the result swung on a mistake. A googly? A wrong un? Call it whatever you like. Meslier thought he had it, hands roaming while the fiddle burned. Regis Le Bris, a small violin under his chin, won’t care. His side are top going into the international break.
🍷 Red, red, whine — Charlton 1-0 Birmingham — Birmingham were the only side to win all of their away games in L1, and it was an impressive reversal in results and performances for Charlton to see the Blues off. Despite giving up possession, the Addick’s front four caused Birmingham issues all game long. Most impressive were full-backs, Josh Edwards and Kayne Ramsay, who snapped, harried and helped the defensive unit to reduce Birmingham to 3 shots (0 on target) all game. The goal, when it came for Godden midway through the second half, was deserved. Good day for the team in red; odd whine or stirring the pot from the Blues’ manager in the post-match?
🤺 Strikerless offence — Crewe 2-0 Gillingham — I (along with Huw and Ali) are due some fatalistic credit for Crewe’s resurgence, arriving as we did, to see them beat Bromley last month. That was their first win of the season. But this was their fifth in six matches. Without a recognised striker on the pitch, Shilow Tracey and Jack Lankester ploughed a pressing furrow, the former nabbing a well-earned brace.
🛻 Scrapheap Challenge — Accrington 2-1 Morecambe — Accrington Stanley were without a win at home this season. Morecambe were without a win in any of their last 14 league games dating back to last season (D5 L9). Neither had kept a clean sheet this term, and neither have still. Little wonder the “scrapheap” narrative had crept up already. But these are two sides used to scrapping, and there’s a long way to go. Although perhaps a longer way to go for Morecambe, they created fewer and poorer opportunities and only made the scoreline look competitive with a late long-range strike from Ben Tollitt.
😴 Not-so-weary Wednesday Win — Coventry 1-2 Sheffield Wednesday — Possibly the result of the weekend for Danny Röhl’s side. Unlike their hosts who played on Tuesday, Wednesday played on… you guessed it. Coventry’s 24-hour advantage gave them no well-rested bonus. The Owls shaded an even game, creating more, defending better, and nabbing a late winner through Shea Charles — it isn’t incidental that his strong form is coinciding with good results: 7 points from 9 for SWFC.
🪨 Somewhat unstoppable force vs reasonably immovable object — Peterborough 2-1 Stevenage — Despite Stevenage going into this having conceded the joint fewest, and despite Posh going into this having typically scored some of the most goals in League One, the former hadn’t won away in 12 games, and the latter hadn’t won in three. Something had to give, and it was the immovable object that shifted within 5 minutes, Donay O’Brien-Brady bagging his first senior goal for Posh. Stevenage were good value for their equaliser and had chances to take more than a point back down the A1. But they were stung in stoppage time: Kwame Poku with Peterborough’s latest winning goal in a league match since August 2021.
🔰 Hoff Menu — Norwich 4-0 Hull City — Norwich ate Hull for breakfast, dinner and tea, and like all good canaries, they suck seed. Josh Sargent scored to make it 15 goals in his last 18 Championship games. Borja Sainz scored and assisted twice — he’s now been involved in more Championship goals than any other player (7 goals, 2 assists). Norwich scored 4. They conceded none. They have the individuals. They’re running just right: 15xG with 16 scored. The turnaround, if you can call it that after finishing in the play-offs last campaign, has been impressive from Johannes Hoff.
💪 To much avale — Notts County 0-1 Port Vale — Darren Moore’s side put the kind of defence-first performance that could help Vale continue a streak of hot form. They didn’t try to go toe-to-toe with County but found a way to live with them. County had 70% possession. Vale won 79% of their tackles (vs 33%). Their smash came on 23 minutes courtesy of Lorent Tolaj, but it was 90 minutes of hard graft to grab all three points. A muscular performance from Vale; County missing key strikers.
📊 Monday Morning Cheat Sheet
From the WhatsApp group to the watercooler: stats to keep you ahead of the game.
🎈Birthday Bumps — Jesurun Rak-Sakyi scored 2 goals on his 22nd birthday to help the Blades become the only EFL side to secure back-to-back Tuesday/Saturday wins, maintaining a season-long unbeaten run for a side who’ve scored 50% of their goals in the opening 15 minutes of games.
🛏️ Sparkly clean — Other than Blades, the only side in England’s top four tiers to keep 7 clean sheets this season are Wigan. They drew 0-0 at Stockport on Saturday.
🛑 BTTS No — Other than the opening game of the season, only one side has scored in any of Gillingham’s matches.
🔥 Swing Lowe — It’s been a sweet time for the ceaseless chariot that is Walsall’s Nathan Lowe, with the 19-year-old notching 3 goals and 3 assists in his last 4 games.
🐏 Rambunctious — Derby County have won 13 of their 17 home league games in 2024, and no other team in England’s top four tiers can boast the same (play-offs aside).
🔌 Leadless — Cambridge United are one of four teams yet to win this season, but setting them apart is the undesirable distinction of being the only side in the EFL yet to take the lead in a single game.
📐 Rooney’s rules — Argyle’s latest home win makes it three on the spin at Home Park; that’s as many as they achieved in their previous 14 games.
🚲 Onyerbikeson — Fred Onyedinma’s winner against Crawley was the Wycombe winger’s first goal since August 2023, putting an end to a 23-game goalless run. Couldn’t miss it, could he?
🎦 5ivelights
In no particular order, a collection of our favourite goals or clips from across the 72.
Shrews’ Ship crashes home, and it’s anything but routine.
Lord, Nelson! Thunder header.
Ooh, Ahhhgyle: alternative angle of a last-minute winner.
Freekick specialist: Lewis ain’t winging it!
Lowlight, not again!?: It’s a Mess…lier
The View From…
9 out of 9…
For the vast majority of our teams, the first three-game week of the season has been and gone. As things stand, only Mansfield have come out the other side with nine points (Newport could join them if they beat Bradford at Valley Parade tonight).
The departure of Davis Keillor-Dunn raised eyebrows amongst Stags fans and neutrals alike, but the goals of Lee Gregory and Will Evans have fired Nigel Clough’s men to five league wins in a row. Prior to this weekend, sceptics pointed to a run of favourable fixtures. After all, victories over Cambridge, Shrewsbury, Northampton and Crawley aren’t exactly coupon-busters, but a 2-0 win against Steve Bruce’s in-form Blackpool is the kind of result that makes even the most ardent naysayer sit up and take note. The Stags are up to 3rd in League One. They’re two points behind big-spenders Birmingham and they’re level on points (with a game in hand over) fairly big-spenders Wrexham. Will it last? Who knows. Is it worth acknowledging? Absolutely.
If you can’t get nine points from three games, then seven is also a very good return. Ten teams achieved this feat, including five in League One. However, one achievement that really catches my eye in a three-game week is back-to-back away wins. Playing away from home twice in the space of four or five days and winning both games is impressive. After all, EFL clubs don’t have squads of 20+ internationals who they can rotate in and out. They don’t have planes taking them to Carlisle on Saturday and Gillingham on Tuesday. They don’t have custom-made mattresses to personalise their stays in five-star hotels. They don’t have an entourage of physios and sports scientists; armed with all of the latest mod-cons to aid their recovery. For most of our teams, their reality is a quick shower, a mass-produced post-match meal and a late-night coach trip home.
Of the 28 EFL clubs who played back-to-back away games at some point this week, only four of them picked up six points. A resurgent Bolton beat Crawley and Northampton, Mansfield saw off Northampton and Crawley, Fleetwood did for Cheltenham and Walsall and Grimsby successfully negotiated the aforementioned trips to Carlisle on Saturday and Gillingham on Tuesday.
It is, however, worth noting that Bolton followed up their six points on the road with a disappointing, albeit comeback, draw at home to Shrewsbury, while Fleetwood drew at home to Bromley and Grimsby lost 3-0 at home to Doncaster.
These leagues are a marathon, not a sprint, but some of the splits really are more brutal than others.
🏆 Fantasy Football
Go head-to-head against team NTT20 in our EFL Fantasy Football league
Ali managed the first triple-figure score of our Fantasy Football season, with 107 points for a solid double-game week. And so the baton passed to Huw Davies, donned in tracksuit and trainers, he went at it like this:
44 GW points for Huw, with 0.0% pick George Cox an inspired selection courtesy of a Swindon clean sheet. Well done to Don’t Look Back Tanganga for being top of the pops for the game week, and of course to IanEvattable (topical!) for topping the table overall.
📺 Watching Brief
Upcoming live EFL games
Monday 7 October 2024
20:00 Bradford vs Newport
Saturday 12 October 2024
All EFL games will be shown live on Sky Sports+