Albion's Victory - The Welsh View

[The Laughing Bluebird]

I thought you might be interested in a couple of the play-off reports that appeared in our local papers today. They can be found on the following website:

http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/

Go to the 'More Football Stories' section halfway down the page.

The Albion pieces are headlined:

'Mum Stays Away To Read Bible, But Nathan's In Her Good Books.'

and

'Brighton Ground Is Taking The Mickey.'

 

[Soton Seagull]

Crikey, I didn't realise that Jonsey was a God Botherer.

Each to their own. I thought he had a fairly good game.

 

[aussie gull]

"You must give Danny Wilson credit. He is a very humble man and, unlike some others in this division, a very humble manager," said Jones.

 

[Trigger]

Nice to say hello to ya in the pub yesterday TLB, although i couldn't find u again when i came back from the bar!

 

[El Presidente]

IT was the greatest day in Nathan Jones' career, a play-off final victory over Bristol City inside the Millennium Stadium.

But mother Margaret preferred to stay at home rather than join the 65,000 crowd - even though she lives just 20 miles away in Blaenrhondda.

The Brighton winger comes from a born-again Christian family and his mother decided to keep the Sabbath holy.

"My mum decided to stay at home. I don't think she'll have any regrets," said Jones, 31. "She'll be delighted that we've won promotion.

"We are a close-knit family and she couldn't be more proud of me than she already is.

"She has missed quite a few games that I've been involved in because they were played on Sundays, so this isn't the first time. But my father, David, was here to watch the game."

Since his side was involved in the Division Two play-off final, Brighton manager Mark McGhee was surely grateful his Welsh winger did not share his mother's view.

"It's not easy for me to play on the Sabbath because I'm a born-again Christian," he added.

"Normally I don't do anything on a Sunday, but I felt God would not have brought me here if He didn't want me to play in the final.

"I've had to make the same decision in the past. When I was playing in Spain, for Numancia, we played on Sundays.

"I believe that everything is God's will and I believe God wouldn't have taken me to places in my life for me to then say, 'No, I can't do it'."

Brighton ensured an immediate return to Division One thanks to Leon Knight's 84th-minute penalty after Danny Coles tripped Chris Iwelumo.

It was Knight's 27th goal of the season and it decided what was, in truth, a poor match.

With both defences on top form, chances were at a premium and one goal was always going to be enough decisive.

"This is one of the best days of my career," said Jones.

"We've played inside a magnificent stadium here in Cardiff which is more or less my home town.

"It really is a dream come true for me.

"We knew it was going to be a very hard game. Both our league games with Bristol City this season were tight.

"They are one of the best sides in the division and were very unlucky not to go up automatically."

For Bristol City manager Danny Wilson, it was a case of play-off heartbreak for the second successive year.

Last season his Robins tumbled out at the semi-final stage to Cardiff City. Now this.

"You must give Danny Wilson credit. He is a very humble man and, unlike some others in this division, a very humble manager," said Jones.

"He was dignified in defeat and I'm sure that his team will bounce back.

"Bristol City are an excellent side. If we couldn't go up then I would have wanted them to win promotion."

Jones played until the 77th minute when McGhee decided to throw on a fresh pair of legs and replace him with John Piercy.

"Sometimes the manager will change things to try and win the game and I'm professional enough to know that I'm not going to play every minute of every match," added the former Maesteg Park, Ton Pentre, Merthyr Tydfil and Southend player.

"He made a change with just over 10 minutes left and we went on to win the game, so no one is going to complain, are they?"

The Seagulls, who included former Cardiff City players Richard Carpenter and Charlie Oatway in midfield, nearly broke the deadlock three minutes before the break when Knight rattled the crossbar with a curling 20-yard free-kick.

The Robins, without their 16-goal striker Lee Peacock because of an ankle injury, desperately lacked punch in the final third.

Brighton threatened Steve Phillips' goal moments after Piercy replaced Jones, Iwelumo glancing the substitute's cross wide of the far post.

But the decisive moment came six minutes from time, Iwelumo dancing into the Robins' penalty box only to be felled by Coles' clumsy challenge.

Knight made no mistake with a cool - and cheeky - penalty which consigned Bristol City to a sixth successive season in Division Two.

As for Brighton, their victory was tempered by the fact that the Sussex club might vanish off the football map unless Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott gives the all-clear for a new 23,000-seater stadium at Falmer.

He will make his decision later this summer.

And Brighton fans, along with chairman Dick Knight, will be hoping they have another reason to uncork the champagne in 2004.

In the meantime ex-Bluebird Carpenter, who was yesterday savouring the fifth promotion of his playing career, is relishing a return to Ninian Park.

"Of course I'm looking forward to going back to Cardiff," he said.

"I had two good years there and I didn't really want to leave.

"But my girlfriend was expecting a baby and we wanted to move back home to Kent.

"A lot has changed at Cardiff since I was last there. I hardly know any of the players - Scott Young has retired and Mark Bonner and Jason Bowen have both gone.

"I think the only Cardiff player who was there when I was is Robert Earnshaw."

Carpenter, part of the Bluebirds side that won promotion in 1999 but was then relegated the following year, left the action on the hour with a calf injury.

"I picked it up about 15 or 20 minutes into the second half.

"I knew it was going to be a nightmare trying to carry on," he said.

"We had Paul Reid sitting on the bench," said Carpenter.

"And he's a good player and it was best that he replaced me."

 

[The Laughing Bluebird]

Nice to say hello to ya in the pub yesterday TLB, although i couldn't find u again when i came back from the bar!

The Gatekeeper was too crowded before the game. The queues at the bar put me off, so I went around the corner to a pub opposite the castle. That was full of Albion fans too but it was easy enough to get served.

Great day out yesterday, enjoyed it very much.

Superb picture in the South Wales Echo today of Richard Carpenter consoling his old Cardiff City team-mate Christian Roberts after the final whistle. Poor old Chris is in floods of tears. Shame.....

 

[Trigger]

Marvellous Scenes!

 

[Skintagain 1983]

Nathan Jones isn't really a god fearing Christian who holds Sundays as sacred.. ....

nor is his mother. They are just too mean to go to the bar on a Sunday!

 

[B.M.F]

Marvellous Scenes!

He is not cosoling him. he is telling the buggar that we are going up and where to put your Caravan in Torquay on a Tuesday night

 

[crasher]

[ Both our league games with Bristol City this season were tight.


Er...didn't they beat us 4-1 at home Nathan?