[Butter]

February ‘08
Cash balance: $2,769,592

We raked in the money last month, thanks to some great attendance for league matches, nearly $200k in FA Cup prize money, and a boatload of extra money thanks to a home FA Cup match.

Feb. 2, Match 32 @ #15 Luton
A preview of our FA Cup match in 2 weeks. Luton average less than a goal per match, and have a -17 goal difference, so we stick with the attacking 4-2-3-1 despite being on the road here. Hakon Opdal returns from injury here, and Firmin Sanou returns from the Cup of Nations as well. In the 27th, Andrej Mlinaric with a masterful backheel to Hagman, and Simon turns, shoots, and scores! Hagman’s 21st of the season puts us up 1-0. Opdal gives up a soft goal just 10 minutes later, and we’re level at 1-1 following the defensive lapse. Off the 2nd half kickoff, Luton with a lazy pass backwards, and Hagman intercepts at 45 yards, runs free to the box, and scores with a strong 15 yard shot into the upper right corner. In the 59th, Sarmov with a great ball ahead of Kabongo… he runs onto it, and fires it past the keeper inside the far post. 3-1, Posh. Opdal picks up a minor knock thanks to the sloppy field conditions. I really want to sub Hagman out due to the injury worry on a sloppy pitch after we go up 2, but I only have 1 sub left and can’t risk losing the keeper as well with no subs to replace him. It goes smoothly, and we take the win.
Win, 3-1, remain 3rd – 3 pts. behind 1st and 2nd

Opdal will be on the shelf for 2-4 more weeks after playing through a badly twisted ankle in this match. I notice that Mark Cousins has been improving by leaps and bounds, so I bring him up to be Cuellar’s backup for the next few matches. I might even start him once or twice. But probably not.

Big big match up next. A win puts us 2nd, into the automatic promotion slot.

Feb. 9, Match 33 v. #2 Norwich
We pile men into the box early on… and in the 8th it pays off as a long range shot by David Van Den Broeck takes a deflection and rolls past the goal line for a 1-0 Posh lead. In the 28th minute, Robert Earnshaw buries a low shot past Cuellar for the equalizer, after Spurr misplayed a long pass interception attempt. Hagman comes out injured in the 30th minute, and seldom used Malcolm Christie replaces him. Here’s your chance, lad. He gets a decent chance just 2 minutes after he comes on, but his shot is hit into the keeper’s stomach. Earnshaw buries a curling 20 yard shot 3 minutes into the 2nd half as the Canaries take control of the match. Norwich begin to control midfield, but in the 74th we get a bit lucky, as the Norwich keeper can’t keep hold of Toure-Maman’s shot, leading to an easy finish for Besian Idrizaj… 2-2 with 15 minutes to play. I bring Mark Cousins on as our final sub, a move sure to not endear me to Ivan Cuellar… but he’s been playing like crap today. With less than one minute of regular time to play, Ait-Alia is beaten down the left… and then sticks his leg out and just takes down a Norwich attacker. He’s sent off, and as he reaches the showers, he hears the crowd moan as the PK is powered in past Cousins. A tough loss, but we really didn’t play very well, and probably deserved to lose.
Loss, 3-2, remain 3rd – 4 pts. behind 2nd place Wigan

Norwich certainly poked a hole in our title hopes with that loss… but the race for 2nd place still lives on. If we can keep our stamina and spirits up, no reason we can’t continue to challenge both Norwich and Wigan for that 2nd automatic promotion slot.

We wait nervously following the match to receive a status report on Simon Hagman. If he were lost for a long while, we’d have to depend on Matt Jansen, Malcolm Christie (who is pouting at the moment), and loaner Besian Idrizaj to provide goals… and only Jansen has been reliable on that front this year. Luckily for us, it’s just a mild concussion, and Hagman should be ready in about a week or so.

Lost in the disappointment of the loss is the fact that this was our first loss in 9 league games. A nice run for a predicted relegation battler.

Feb. 12, Match 34 @ #5 Stoke
We back into a 4-4-2 counter to start the match. Aime Lavie returns to the lineup from Cup of Nations duty today. Jansen and Idrizaj pair up front today. In the 22nd, a nicely built counter ends with Fadiga sending in a short pass to Mlinaric, and the youngster’s half volley buries into the right side of the net! Mlinaric’s first Posh goal, and we lead 1-0. Jansen is chopped down on a breakaway in the 42nd, and we go a man up as the defender is shown the red card. In the 58th, the game is evened up as Balazs Borbely is sent off, and Stoke awarded a PK for a breakaway foul. Stoke convert it, and we’re level on the scoreboard and on players. In the 67th, Barragan with a nice long ball to Matt Jansen, and he slots it home past the keeper to put us back ahead. Cuellar with a couple of nice saves late, and we hold on for the win.
Win, 2-1, remain 3rd – 4 pts. behind Wigan and Norwich

Next up, a big money match for us, as a win and a favorable draw could earn us upwards of $1 million. That is, the 5th Round Cup tie with Luton. We just won here 2 weeks ago… can we manage to do it again?

Feb. 16, FA Cup Fifth Round @ Luton
Luton start out much stronger in this match than they did in their last one against us. Christie is the lone striker in this 4-2-3-1. Jansen is backing him up as the withdrawn striker, however. After several chances, Luton finally get one in on the soggy pitch… a long low shot past Evander Sno and Ivan Cuellar goes in, and it’s 1-0 Hatters at halftime. We bring Idrizaj on as a 2nd striker at halftime, switching to a 3 man back row. In the 58th, this move pays off, as Fadiga’s cross to the near post finds Idrizaj, who rises above his marker and heads it in from inside 5 yards. Idrizaj’s 5th goal of the season puts us level. In the 69th, we strike again, this time it’s Matt Jansen heading one in from a Van Den Broeck early ball. We switch to the 4-4-2 counter after taking the lead. Sadly for us, Luton are able to equalize in the 82nd minute, after a pass splits our central defense, and Cuellar can’t stop the 10 yard shot. That late goal earns Luton a replay.
Draw, 2-2, game to be replayed on Feb. 27th at London Road