I went to see Arsenal Reserves last night.
Arriving at Underhill, the Barnet ground, I realised that I had not been here since 1989, when left-winger Andy Clarke used to play for Barnet.
Portsmouth Reserves contained Arsenal cleverly and fairly and won the game.
Mike Williamson and Luke Wilkinson were very solid at the back, the tiny Paris Cowan-Hall was lively on the right, left winger Tom Kilbey jumped beautifully to reach a free-kick by little midfielder Eugen Bopp, and headed the only goal of the first half. Arsenal concede from a set-piece in 17 minutes? What a surprise.
Second half, Bopp smashed in a superb shot from just outside the box in 76. I did not think he would score from where he was but his strike was a left-foot bullet that flew into the bottom corner. A goal that a Premier League pro would have been proud to score. Pompey played well, collectively and individually.
A full moon beamed brightly among some high clouds, visible just below the roof of our stand, and the PA announcer said, “Tonight’s attendance is 682.Thank you.”
Portsmouth director Mark Jacob had invited me to go to the game as his guest and I accepted because I thought Craig Eastmond would be playing, which he was.
After the final whistle, Mark said he should really go down and touch base with Portsmouth’s reserve coach before we left.
So we were standing in a narrow corridor outside the dressing room, next to a plastic storage box topped by a net-bag containing a dozen footballs, and Mark was talking to this ebullient, sporty guy, who is chunky and fit-looking, wearing black tracksuit trousers tucked into football socks and boots. The coach is pleased with the game his boys have played. Rightly so, as they deserved to win.
Then the Portsmouth players, who had been warming down, came one by one along this very narrow corridor, each one smaller than he looked on the pitch, each one alarmingly young, some with long hair. Even the lanky, broad-shouldered Kilbey is smaller than I thought he was. Kilbey played a helluva game last night and so did half a dozen of his teammates.
Then we left and walked down the touchline towards the clubhouse.
“What’s the coach’s name?”
“Guy Whittingham, ex-Aston Villa and Portsmouth.”
“I remember him as a player.”
“The blond guy was Ian Woan.”
“I interviewed him once for 90 Minutes!”
That was a phoner which Woan, who played for Forest, would not remember. His American fiancee was doing her degree.
So that was my Monday night. A very low-key evening but an informative one for this old beatnik .
What were Arsenal Reserves like?
Don’t ask. I’m not going to repeat what I said to Mark as we walked up to the main road.
There are times, even on ANR, when self-censorship has to kick in.
If I started writing , I’d be here all day and all tomorrow and it would turn into a book. And I’d have to call it By High Barnet Station I Sat Down And Wept.
ARSENAL : Szczesny, Gilbert, Evina, Frimpong (Murphy 65), Bartley, Miquel, Randall, Coquelin, Watt (Freeman 82), Eastmond (Deacon 65), Sunu. Subs not used: Yennaris, Henderon.
PORTSMOUTH : Niemi, Hurst, Sowah, Pack, Wilkinson, Williamson, Nlundulu (Du Chattelier 65), Bopp, Cowan-Hall, Apircerni, Kilbey. Subs not used: Smith, Walshe, Cuvelier, Ryan.