The U's-letter: Issue #2
Green shoots and manager-less opposition: here's your weekly update from Cambridge United and beyond
Welcome to Issue #2 of the U’s-letter! The current record for United since the newsletter launched is three defeats in all competitions, and just the one goal scored. Granted, there are some bigger issues that are much more tangibly linked to how the football team performs that a little weekly newsletter, but it won’t stop the superstitious paranoid in me.
Before getting into it, thanks firstly to everyone for their support and kind words after the first issue last week. It was a great start to something that can hopefully become a permanent feature in people’s weekly schedule of U’s content.
Do of course send through any feedback, comments, praise or abuse, preferably to our email hello@undertheabbeystand.com
This week’s U’s-letter, then. The bad news for United is the two league defeats leaving us on 0 from 6 available points. The good news is there are another five teams in the same position as us, including Shrewsbury and Orient who potentially might be part of that bottom part of the league we’ll likely end up occupying.
It is also incredibly important to remember it’s the 22nd of August, things can change very quickly and there’s 44 more league games worth of points up for grabs. From a U’s perspective, it feels like there are still some green shoots. The way we played in the second half against QPR and the first 60 minutes against Crawley shows some initial signs of a really fluent attacking team that just needs some finishing touches (literally) to start racking up some points, or at the very least being competitive.
It might just be a case of being patient. As patient as you have been to get stuck into the meat of this week’s issue, so…
📰 News From The U’s 📰
The arrival of Josh Stokes has bowled fans over. If an instant message in the UTAS inbox from a Bristol City podcast expressing their excitement at his talent finally being on show in the EFL is anything to go by, then we’ve knocked this one out of the park.
And another signing, finally this time the stri- oh, it’s a left wing back. A good one by the sounds of it in the shape of Emmanuel Longelo on loan from Birmingham City.
Top EFL club in the Fair Game Index, you’ll never sing that.
The Bolton home fixture in a few weeks has been moved to Tuesday 26th November. This means we now have three away games in a row, from Bristol Rovers, to Mansfield, to Wycombe. Big test.
The wait for a number 9 (or two) goes on. On this occasion, no news is bad news.
✍️ At The Match ✍️
U’s 0-1 Crawley
Written by Owen Kiernan. Full report available on The Antler
That stung a bit, didn’t it? I know there’s still 44 games left to play this season, but there’s a part of me that thinks we might be rueing the three points gifted to Crawley at the end of the season.
For two-thirds of the game the best chances were United’s; Barton, Lavery and Brophy all coming close (although not all that close in Brophy’s case - it was an absolute sitter he decided to try and pass across the box, but who really expected a goal anyway?). We can’t be too hard on Barton, making his first Football League start and only his third appearance, but he needs to work on his composure in front of goal - that kind of thing only comes with experience and there’s nothing I’ve seen that makes me think that it won’t come.
We got our subs exactly right on Tuesday, which makes it all the more annoying we got them so wrong on Saturday. Contrast that to Crawley, whose subs all had a decent impact on the game (former U Jack Roles with the assist for the winner). Our missed chances came to punish us four minutes from time, as Roles’ ball found Adeyemo who drew Reyes miles out of position before slotting past him. Five goals conceded already this season, four of them from entirely preventable goalkeeper errors from both first team keepers.
The pressure now is on Ben Strang and the board to back Monk with the players we need to complement what we have already. They’re more likely to be Premier League or Championship loanees rather than anyone we’ve heard of, but these players can have an impact despite their inexperience.
🧐 View From The Away End 🧐
Crawley
From Simply Redz
A fairly even first half, but one which Cambridge had the better of - especially chances! On another day with a clinical finisher you’re a couple of goals up. Our style was very unusual and not like us with a lot more long balls than we would often play - not sure if it was a game plan or just how we struggled with your press to get the ball down and create space.
You started the second half well and had a 1-on-1 which should’ve been put away, but once we made changes on the hour mark we took control of the game and played “our way”, knocking it around and making you chase us and by the end you looked dead on your feet.
A goal not befitting of our style, but a great ball over the top by Flint and a fantastic finish from Adeyemo meant we clinched it and probably deservedly based on that last 30-mins.
Thought your new CB loanee was very good. Nullified most threats and Barton looked very good for you too - probably your MOTM. I reckon you need a clinical finisher up top (don’t we all). Style was evident and thought you were better than I expected!
FANCY BEATING US AT EFL FANTASY? LINK BELOW 👇
🔢 Stats Corner 🔢
Maybe not so much of a stat, but it’s a quirk that we face Blackpool this weekend having both faced the same two opponents in the opening two matches, Crawley and Stockport. We’ve both gifted them six points as well, so maybe a draw is on the cards as we’re both so generous.
Blackpool have only ever beaten us back-to-back once before, in the 1999-2000 campaign.
They also haven’t lost the opening three games of a campaign since 2014/15 - a season in which they were relegated from the Championship.
Sullay Kaikai has a ‘goals vs xG’ number of -0.84, the sixth worst in the division for players who have played the first two games. Essentially, he’s had expected goals of 0.84, should’ve scored, but hasn’t - but it does show our chance creation is also improving on limited data.
Could be worse (or better?) - Rotherham have an xG of 4.32 but have so far scored 0 goals. 0% conversion rate.
🔮 Opposition Preview 🔮
Blackpool (H)
Last 5 (last 3, on this occasion): LWL - A terrible start to the league season, with two losses on the bounce in the league leading to manager Neil Critchley getting the sack. Richard Keogh will be in the dugout on an interim basis, hoping to rectify Blackpool’s remarkably poor away form that stretches back to last season.
Last time out: Blackpool 1-0 U’s, 6th April 2024. A fairly unfortunate defeat where we might have snatched a point as we limped to safety at the end of last season.
Our H2H: W4, D4, L5. Since 1999, we’ve only won one out of our last 9 meetings (D3, L5), and that win came in this exact fixture last year under a certain Neil Harris.
Manager: Richard Keogh (caretaker). The bruising centre-half might be best known for his time at Derby, but he will be in the interim hot seat for their visit to the Abbey after the shock early season departure of Neil Critchley.
One to watch: Jordan Rhodes. They probably have better players, but no one says “knows where the goal is” quite like Jordan Rhodes. Certified EFL bagsman, give him an inch he’ll take a mile.
Former U’s players: Hayden Coulson.
🏟️ Under The Other Stands 🏟️
Crawley are obviously the main story, but we know all about them. Of the other teams predicted to be in and around us, Shrews are also yet to pick up a point having lost heavily at home to P*sh. Northampton overcame Exeter, meaning they’re both sitting on three points. And Burton conceded a 97th minute penalty to only come away from Mansfield with a point. Lots of goals in their first two games, they’re going to be fun this season.
Birmingham notched their first win, and Stockport, Charlton and Huddersfield join Crawley with a perfect record to kick off the season. Stockport’s 5 scored 0 conceded especially looks really impressive.
Reading are probably worth highlighting, their routine 2-0 win over Wigan says a lot about where they’re at this season following on from a really impressive point at St Andrew’s on the opening weekend. With a caretaker all but done according to reports, add them to the reasons why League One is remarkably strong this year.
💻 Social Digest 💻
Just Jamie Vardy. What a return to the top flight.
Speaking of shithousery, this is unrivalled from the Hungarian top division.
A 28-minute long, 34 penalty shootout? Go on then.
Very sweet content from exiled U’s fan across the world Max Rushden.
📚 Read And Listen 🎧
The latest pod is largely quite a positive take on last week’s loss to Crawley.
Once again, NTT20 have a brilliant piece live which is also very relevant to the U’s in the immediate future, about Critchley’s departure from Blackpool.
An interesting piece in City AM about whether Wrexham’s crazy spending over the past few years is hurting lower league finances.
🕺 What’s Spinning? 🕺
New to the U’s-letter from this week, we’re going to be recommending a song every week that we’ve been listening to.
Once upon a time, in a past life, our very own Jordan Worland was Cambridge’s leading music journalist, and his website Slate The Disco was the mecca for gig reviews at the Portland Arms and beyond. Now a treasured member of the UTAS team, from time to time he can’t resist from picking out a tune or two.
This week’s recommendation is ‘Holy, Holy’ by Geordie Greep. The former Black Midi guitarist’s first single for his solo project is a salsa-influenced crooning belter.