Signs of life from improved derby day
Cheltenham Town drew 1-1 in their first league meeting of the season with county rivals Forest Green Rovers. Jon Palmer looks at the main talking points
Red and white shoots of recovery for Cheltenham Town
Cheltenham Town have their work cut out to avoid finishing below Forest Green Rovers for the first time since 1927, but this was much more like it from Michael Duff’s side.
Their effort and endeavour could not have been further removed from the 4-0 Checkatrade Trophy humiliation they suffered last month.
Forest Green are vastly improved this season and look capable of making a play-off challenge.
But there were enough signs of progress from Cheltenham to suggest they can also improve on their 17th placed finish of last term with Duff’s impact starting to become obvious.
Duff needs that elusive first win but fitness and organisation are both progressing, the players are responding to his methods and he had set them up well at the New Lawn.
Tyrone Barnett and Luke Varney’s partnership becoming increasingly effective
Barnett picked up a dead leg in the process of scoring his first goal for Cheltenham, reacting quickly to follow up after Varney’s penalty had been brilliantly parried by Robert Sanchez in the 26th minute.
The goal will have done the on-loan forward from Port Vale the power of good and there was some promising signs of a fruitful partnership with Varney developing.
Varney plays like a striker with all the knowledge you would expect from a 36-year-old who has spent the majority of his career in the top two divisions, but crucially he is showing no signs of ageing and his fitness levels are a shin- ing example to the rest of the squad.
The pair gave Forest Green’s defend- ers a tough time, particularly in the first half, and Duff will hope to have Barnett available again at Oldham because he is becoming increasingly effective as his sharpness returns.
He is strong enough in the air to unsettle even the most dominant of League Two centre-halves.
Solid defensive display ensures further Scott Flinders heroics not necessary
While Barnett and Varney were posing a major threat at one end, Cheltenham’s backline looked secure for the vast majority of the 90 minutes.
They will be extremely disappointed to concede a header from a corner, with Joseph Mills powering in Theo Archibald’s cross in the 75th minute to set up a tense finish for the 682 travelling fans in attendance.
But Craig Alcock, Johnny Mullins, Will Boyle and Chris Hussey all performed well, with plenty of support from those in front of them, making it a surprisingly quiet afternoon for goalkeeper Scott Flinders, who has been overworked on too many occasions for comfort already this term.
Boyle threw himself in front of anything that moved, making several brave blocks, while Hussey showed his quality and composure at left-back on only his second start for the club.
The backline that started at the New Lawn has plenty of experience and it looked comfortable and well drilled throughout the opening 45 minutes.
When Tahvon Campbell was sent on up front, Dayle Grubb moved out to the left and deep-lying midfielder Reece Brown started to pull the strings for Rovers in the second period, they sud- denly found themselves far busier.
But they continued to stand up to the task, which bodes well for the chal- lenges ahead and overall Rovers deserved a share of the spoils for their second half improvement.
Liam Mcalinden back in from the cold Former Exeter City forward Mcalinden could have been forgiven for wonder- ing whether he would be seen in a Cheltenham shirt again, not used in League Two since being withdrawn halfway through the 1-0 win at Cambridge United on August 25.
He has often been asked to train separately from the main group, but Duff has been pleased with the way he has responded and also his efforts in the 6-0 Gloucestershire Senior Cup win over Mangotsfield United.
Mcalinden was rewarded with a place on the bench and when Kevin Dawson suffered a medial ligament injury early on, he was sent on in a right midfield role.
He performed well and very nearly made it 2-0 five minutes into the second half, denied by a superb reaction block from Sanchez.
Alex Addai was back on the bench after several weeks in the wilderness, while Ben Tozer was sent on for the final eight minutes as Cheltenham were forced to withstand a late onslaught from their hosts.
The squad has been reduced to a more manageable size, with five out on loan and Kalvin Kalala departing.
The surviving members must now convince Duff they are worth keeping around beyond January, when there are certain to be further changes.
Chelsea youngster catches the eye on derby day Jacob Maddox has the ability to glide past defenders as if they are not there and, starting on the right of a midfield four, he caused some real problems for Forest Green.
There are obvious similarities between the Chelsea youngster and Jerell Sellars, who was just as good at weaving around defenders and carrying the ball swiftly up the pitch.
The key for Maddox stepping things up to another level now is end product and Duff has called upon him to consistently look like a Chelsea player on loan in League Two.
Maddox is entertaining to watch and has a bright future ahead of him.
If he can add goals and a few more assists to his repertoire this season he could easily become one of the best in the division, which at 19 years old is no mean feat.