Millwall's Match Day Reports

[Gary@Millwall]

Match Day 1

New Years Day Massacre At Edgeley Park

Stockport County 1 Millwall 4

Scorers

Mileta Rajović (3rd Minute)
Dane Scarlett (56th Minute)
Simon Terodde (62nd Minute)
Billy Mitchell (70th Minute)
Owen Dodgson (73rd Minute OG)

Edgeley Park played host to Millwall for the opening day of season 3 on New Years Day 2024.

Mike Bridge and his scouting team looked like they had done their homework on Millwall during the pre season competition and setup to match the South London outfit with 4-4-2 but gained tactical advantage by deciding to pass the ball rather than the normal tactic Windebank deployed.

This worked a treat as Stockport dominated the opening three minutes and were rewarded with a 3rd minute opener after Gnonto played a perfect pass to Mileta Rajović who unleashed a terrific drive. James Trafford was in a panic a fell over but somehow got his fingertips to the ball but the ball hit the post and the back of the net.

Windebank shouted at his players to attack and attack they did the next nineteen minutes of action but could not get the equalising goal.

The rest of the half was very even with both sides creating lots of chances but both keepers were equal to everything thrown at them and the half ended 1-0 to the home side.

The Millwall fans were loud with the Monk chant cascading around Edgeley Park and the home faithful were getting nervous as Millwall created wave after wave of attacks from the 2nd half whistle a goal surely would be coming. With Millwall fans singing "we're going to score in a minute" Ander Guevara found the rampaging Dane Scarlett with a fantastic pass with Scarlett unleashing a thunderbolt to grab a 56th minute equaliser.

The away end went mental but even they could not sense what was about to occur especially following the 60th minute substitution with Dane Scarlett, Ander Guevara and Leif Davis being replaced by Simon Terodde, Billy Mitchell and Axel Disasi.

Within in two minutes of the substitutions Danny McNamara threw the ball to Simon Terodde who made the score 2-1 to the away side.

Stockport were rattled and Mike Bridge ordered his side to attack which played into the Lions hands as they gained tactical advantage.

In the 70th minute Billy Mitchell was called Marco Van Basten by the commentators after he volleyed Millwall into a 3-1 lead.

The embarrassment of Stockport County's 2nd half collapse was complete in the 73rd minute when Owen Dodgson deflected a Millwall shot off of his panicked shin to make the score 4-1.

Millwall saw the game out with great game management to secure a great opening day victory and win the one game trophy as they sit proudly at the top of the table.

Stockport edged possession with 52% but Millwall created 28 shots to the home sides 22 with the rampant Lions having 14 shots on target to County's 12.

Windebank's Post Match Comments

Happy New Year what a fantastic performance and result and I could not be happier. Mike is a top bloke and a tough manager to beat so I am over the moon with the three points today.

James Trafford after a shaky start was phenomenal today between the sticks and the outfield players were on their game where both sides showed how football should be played.

The fans were also brilliant and I hope they realise today was something special especially the 2nd half and those sort of spells between the 56th and 73rd minute don't happen every game.

Great game Mike and best of luck for the season mate.

January Word Count
Match Day 1 - 606 Words

[Gary@Millwall]

FA Cup Round 1

Goals Galore At The Den With Millwall Progressing To The 2nd Round

Scorers

Smith (26th Minute)
Aidomo Emakhu (40th Minute)
Yusuf Kabadayi (42nd Minute)
Aidomo Emakhu (43rd Minute)
Lee Gregory (59th Minute)
Simon Terodde (87th Minute)

Fresh from their dismantling of Stockport County The Den was full for the visit of the six fingered League One side Plymouth Argyle for the first round of the FA Cup.

Millwall setup 4-4-2 Attacking and surprised their fans with some squad players getting some minutes. Henning Matriciani, Axel Disasi, Casper De Norre and Simon Terodde got their first starts of the season making way for Leif Davis, Josip Stanišić, Marvelous Nakamba and Dane Scarlett. Plymouth Argyle setup 4-3-3 European conceding both home and tactical advantage to the SouthLondon outfit.

As to be expected Millwall dominated the opening 15 minutes but could not get the opening goal, then all of the sudden Plymouth put their foot on the gas and thoroughly deserved to take the lead in the 26th minute when Pleguezuelo through ball found Smith who lobbed the outrushing James Trafford to give the Devon side a 1-0 lead.

Millwall did not panic though and a mistake from the Argyle keeper from a Casper De Norre corner saw Club Captain Wonderkid Aidomo Emakhu calmly slot the ball into the net for a 40th minute equaliser.

Before the celebrating Millwall fans could take their seats another Millwall teenager turned the game on its head when Yusuf Kabadayi sprinted through the sleeping Plymouth defence lobbing the Argyle keeper from 30 yards to make it 2-1 in the 42nd minute.

The Den was rocking and the fans could not finish their famous song with the rendition of No One Likes Us not getting to We Don't Care as on loan Benfica defender Jeremiah Israël St. Juste found the rampaging Aidomo Emakhu who hit a great first time shot to get his 2nd and Millwall's 3rd 60 seconds after the 2nd goal.

The Plymouth AI manager was furious and made two substitutions before the half time whistle went to a rapturous appreciation from the Millwall faithful.

Millwall were all over the Devon outfit before getting hit by a sucker punch when former Lion Lee Gregory pulled a goal back on 59 minutes to make the score 3-2 and the Den very nervy.

Millwall were all over Plymouth like a bout of German Measles but frustration started to build as they could not get that all important fourth goal for some breathing space. In the 87th minute those fears were put to bed when Yusuf Kabadayi found his German counterpart Simon Terodde who got his 2nd goal in as many games to put Millwall into the hat for the 2nd round draw.

The Millwall fans were ecstatic with 3 three sides of the ground singing "we've got a big Fucking German, Big Fucking German" which Terodde seemed to lap up as he seems to be enjoying life with the Lions.

Millwall smash the absolute fanny out of their League One opposition having 64% possession and creating 22 shots to Argyle's 12 and having 12 shots on target to 5.

Windebank's Post Match Comments

What can I say we destroyed them and got plenty of minutes into the legs of our squad players showing the depth and winning mentality of my players. Historically I struggle managing against the AI and was very concerned we would get knocked out by this League One club.

Thankfully that was not the case and we showed real character to again come back after going a goal down. That is a good habit to get into and the abs earned for my players today were remarkable. Aidomo Emakhu has also rated up to 18 rated which cant be bad earning 86 shooting abs in just two games.

Getting to the next round is massive for a club our size especially with the £2.5m gate receipts we receive for each round we are in the Cup.

The fans, players and staff will be glued to the FFO TV screens for the next round draw and we will be really hoping for a home draw against anyone coz no one likes a trip to deep South Bandit Country.

We have a massive game against Luton Town next at the Den and really need to be focused following their opening day draw after throwing a two goal lead away to Coventry City and losing to League One Hull City on penalties tonight after being 2-1 up.

Neil Stockley will not be happy so we need to make sure we are fully on our game if we are to get a positive result against his side and maintain our 100% start for as long as possible.

Tonight we will just count the additional £2.5m our fantastic performance has earned us.

[Gary@Millwall]

Match Day 2

Millwall Capitulate To Ten Man Luton Town Despite Smashing The Fanny Out Of Them

Millwall 2 Luton Town 3

Scorers

Danny McNamara (8th Minute)
Dane Scarlett (23rd Minute)
Mpanzu - Sent Off (36th Minute)
Bradley (62nd Minute)
Veiga (64th Minute)
Morris(75th Minute Penalty)

In the first League home game of the season the most bizarre of games took place as Millwall fans left the ground unsure how they witness the travesty of a 2nd half collapse against 10 men that their hero's had just dominated all over the pitch.

Things started very brightly with Windebank and his scouting team getting the number of Luton Town gaining tactical advantage with Long Ball against Counter Attacking.

Millwall dominated the opening minutes of the game and Yusuf Kabadayi found Danny McNamara who gave the Lions the lead in the 8th minute.

Both teams matched tactics and after a little sparring Dane Scarlett showed great skill as he performed a England vs Scotland Gascoigne goal to give the Lions a 2-0 lead with just 23 minutes on the clock.

Neil Stockley acted swiftly bringing on their star player who was surprisingly on the bench in the form of Attacking midfielder Clark and barked at his players to attack.

With Millwall edging the actions the Luton players started losing their heads and Mpanzu was given a straight red when he headbutted Aidomo Emakhu in the 36th minute and Luton Town were down to 10 men.

Two minutes later the Den erupted when Jeremiah Israël St. Juste scored a fantastic goal only to the shock of everyone in the ground and the commentators the goal was ruled out for a controversial offside decision.

The Millwall players looked furious with the poor decision and saw out the half battering the Luton Town goal but were not able to add to their two goal lead.

Millwall came out for the 2nd half with more of the same but were hit with a sucker punch in Luton's first action of the 2nd half when Alvavez made an incisive pass to Bradley who struck the ball home to half the deficit.

Two Minutes later the Den fell silent when Clark found Veiga with a towering header, Veiga's effort hit the bar but he was there to slot home the rebound and shockingly the game was all level.

Windebank bought on 3 substitutes and again Millwall went for the throat but to no avail and in the 75th minute Rodrigo went pass 3 Millwall players and a rash challenge by James Trafford saw the referee award a penalty that Morris despatched with ease to give Luton a 3-2 lead.

For the remaining 15 minutes Millwall continued to pepper the Luton Town goal but could not score and Luton Town left the Den lucky to not get arrested for mugging charges.

Millwall had 57% possession and created 31 chances to Luton's 18 and had 19 yes NineFuckingTeen Shots on target compared to Luton's 10.

Despite the defeat the Millwall players left the pitch to a standing ovation but the officials waited in the centre circle for an escort off the pitch.

Windebanks Post Match Comments

I have to say I am a bit shell shocked at what just happened out there on the pitch today. How the flying fuck we have lost that game is beyond me. I cannot fault my players there as we created enough chances and had enough shots on target to win three games but lets not take anything away from Neil Stockley's Luton as they showed tremendous character to withstand the battering we subjected them too and win with 10 men.

My job now is to make sure I pick the players up for Monday's game because they are very disappointed with what transpired in the 2nd half out there today.

Great Game Neil and best of luck for the season mate

[Gary@Millwall]

Match Day 3

Windebank Shell Shocked Following Defeat To Nine Man Fulham

Fulham 3 Millwall 0

Scorers

Cash 13th Minute
Cash - Sent Off (45th Minute)
Jed Wallace (54th Minute)
Veretout (80th Minute)
Posch - Sent Off (83rd Minute)

Millwall fans were expecting an improved result following their shock defeat to Luton Town in the previous game in this London Derby. Those expectations were ripped to shreds despite Millwall yet again dominating their opponents and with them playing with 10 men for over 45 minutes and 9 men for over 7 minutes.

Fulham took a 13th minute lead following some great football with Cash latching onto a great Pjanic pass unleashing a shot that James Trafford had no chance in reaching.

Fulham then started to give Millwall a footballing lesson controlling the match until the 29th minute when the Millwall players started to wake up. From this moment on Millwall started to create chances but the Lions had no bite in front of goal but the Fulham players were getting frustrated culminating in Cash getting sent off for a 2nd bookable offence just before half time.

Millwall started to make the extra player count but in the 54th minute Pjanic became creator yet again when he found former Millwall favourite Jed Wallace who connected from a cross that James Trafford clawed off the line but in true FFO style the referee awarded a goal without consulting VAR.

Millwall fans were enraged with a crescendo of "we always get SHIT refs" bellowing out of the away end.

Millwall then unleashed wave after wave of attacks but could not get a goal. Craven Cottage then erupted in the 80th minute Veretout took a shot from outside the area to make the score 3-0.

Despite being 3-0 down the Millwall players kept attacking Fulham and in the 83rd minute Posch got sent off for a 2nd bookable offence and Fulham were now down to 9 men.

Despite seven minutes of injury time attacking from the Lions they could not get a goal and the game ended 3-0 to the home side.

Millwall had 57% possession and created 24 chances to Fulham's 17 with Millwall having 14 shots on target to Fulham's 11.

Windebank's Post Match Comments

I am furious with that result and yet again we have ended up with zero points despite creating and having enough shots on target to win two games.

We are dominating games creating chances but dont have the gonads to either hold on to leads on in this case actually score a goal. We are a very young side and perhaps we dont have the composure due to that youthfulness and lack of experience.

We always new this was going to be a tough season and it is looking like this is going to be the case collecting only 3 points from a possible 9.

What I have told the players is that I cant fault the effort and they are playing the sort of football I want to see us play so they have to keep doing what they have been doing and the results should turn around.

Well played Joe and best of luck for the season.

[Gary@Millwall]

Match Day 4

Trafford Clanger Real Kick In The Bollocks As Performance Does Not Reflect Result Yet Again!!!!

Millwall 1 Stoke City 1

Scorers

Dane Scarlett (43rd Minute)
Tchamadeu (92nd Minute)

With 3 points from a possible 9 and two straight League defeats despite results not reflecting performances there was a nervous tension inside the Den for the visit of Stoke City.

Windebank changed formation for this game obviously worried about the conceding 7 goals in the first 3 League games and opted for a back 5 counter attacking tactic. Stoke City deployed the 4-4-2 Normal tactic.

Millwall were having the better of the first half and a tactical switch in the 35th minute that lead to the Lions taking a 43rd minute lead when Flynn Downes saw his shot hit a Stoke City defender with the ball falling to the feet of Dane Scarlett who made no mistake with a curling shot to make the score 1-0.

Millwall continued to dominate the 2nd half and again were creating endless chances without being able to score the all important 2nd goal.

With the clock running down the Den was left in shock when Danny McNamara performed a needless clumsy challenge on Wesley and received his 2nd yellow card to take an early bath on 88 minutes.

Surely Millwall could hold out with only 2 minutes left and injury time in a game they had yet again totally dominated.

Could they fuck as yet again a James Trafford error cost Millwall the 3 points in the 92nd minute. When Stoke City defender Tchamadeu took a shitty looking shot no one in the ground expected a goal. How wrong were they as James Trafford dropped the ball into the back of the net to boos around the stadium.

The Millwall fans seem to be really turning on the 20 year old keeper as he continues to cost the Lions points with stupid mistakes and conceding too many goals.

Millwall had 57% possession and again created 21 shots to Stoke City's 11 with Millwall having 12 shots on target to Stokes 7.

Windebank's Post Comments

What can I say that was a real kick in the teeth and the way we conceded makes a point feel like a defeat. Ok we stopped the run of defeats but to keep dominating games and only have 4 points out of a possible 12 is really appalling. The mistakes James is making is adding to the pressure he is feeling and ask the fans to remain patient. Form is temporary but class is permanent and I hope the fans realise that and give the youngest a chance.

I keep saying this but if we keep playing like this we will win more games than we will lose.

Pleasure as always Derek best of luck for the season mate

[Gary@Millwall]

Match Day 5

Another Poor Referring Decision Costs Millwall As They Make It Four Games Without A Win

Norwich City 1 Millwall 0

Scorers

McCallum (49th Minute)

Millwall's poor form continued after a very poor refereeing decision sent the Lions to 18th in the League table with them earning only one point from a possible twelve.

Make no mistake this was Millwall's worse performance of the season by far but they still slightly outplayed the home side but again ended up with zero points.

The game was not a great spectacle with quite a few fouls which stopped the game flowing and despite Millwall having slightly better of the first half it ended 0-0.

The pivotal moment of the match happened in the first action of the 2nd half when Ui Job overhit his passed but it somehow found McCallum whose shot was saved by Trafford on the line but yet again the wanky FFO referee awarded goal when even Stevie Wonder could see it did not cross the line, but Norwich had the lead on 48 minutes.

The Lions spirit was not in questions and it just was not their day as Flynn Downes hit the bar in the in the 82nd minute and Jeremiah Israël St. Juste saw his 92nd minute effort hit the post as Millwall failed to score for the 2nd time this season and the 2nd away League game in a row.

Millwall had 54% possession and created 10 chances to the six fingered Canaries 7 with both sides having 4 shots on target each.

Windebank's Post Match Comments

It really pisses me off the way these corrupt FFO officials make disgusting decisions that costs us the game. The referee and his other officials are hiding in their changing rooms as they know they are a joke giving a goal that never was. Yes this was our worse performance of the season but we slightly outplayed a stronger team at their home ground and never really looked in trouble other than having to worry about bogus officials as we are technically playing 14 men at the moment.

Look No One Likes Us I get it but for the love of God something has to be done about these shit decisions we seem to always be on the wrong end of.

[Gary@Millwall]

Match Day 6

Millwall Celebrate First Home League Win Of The Season As They Destroy The Bees

Millwall 2 Brentford 0

Scorers

Aidomo Emakhu (16th Minute)
Marvelous Nakamba (72nd Minute)

Despite a torrid run of League results and without a home League win this season Millwall were on fire for this London derby.

The Millwall fans were fired up for this game and boy did the players give them something to shout about. Every time the Lions attacked it seem to end up with a shot from a Millwall player.

The opening 15 minutes was end to end but the Den erupted in the 16th minute when Romain Esse saw his shot hit the post and nestle in the net. The Brentford fans then erupted as the goal was ruled out for offside.

30 seconds later an incense Romain Esse delivered a great ball from a free kick to Aidomo Emakhu who hit a hard drive past Flekken to make the score 1-0 and with no dodgy FFO referee bollocks the Den erupted again and the Brentford founds looked crestfallen.

Despite both sides hitting the woodwork a couple of times an exciting first half ended 1-0 to the home side.

The 2nd half continued as the first with Millwall having lots of shots and Brentford also creating quite a few chances. The game was on a knife edge and given Millwall's troubles in keeping a lead this season the nerves started to ramp up as the game entered in the final quarter.

In the 72nd minute the roof blew off the Den when substitute Billy Mitchell found Marvelous Nakamba who made no mistake to score his first goal for the club and give Millwall an important two goal lead.

The nerves were gone and Millwall dominated the final minutes of the game to secure their first home league win of the season and their first win since the opening game following three defeats and a draw in that torrid spell.

Millwall had 52% possession and created 34 chances to Brentford's 18, Millwall had an incredible 18 shots on target to Brentford's 6

Windebank's Post Match Comments

What a showing that was today under immense pressure with us being in the bottom three. It was great to see our play actually getting the rewards they deserved and i am especially impressed that we did not feel sorry for ourselves when Romain Esse's goal was ruled out for offside. Instead we puffed our chest out and said fuck you FFO and scored straight away.

You could see the relief around the ground when Marvelous smashed in the 2nd goal and to get our first clean sheet in the League will do young James the world of good.

All in all it was a great day and hopefully we can kick on now and start picking up more points and start moving up the table

Good game Marcus been a long time since we played each other

[Gary@Millwall]

Match Day 7

Millwall Edge Nine Goal Thriller After Nearly Giving Windebank A Rage Attack

Ipswich Town 4 Millwall 5

Scorers

Dane Scarlett (2nd Minute)
Kevin Nisbet (11th Minute)
Romain Esse (21st Minute)
Josip Stanišić (32nd Minute)
Hirst (56th Minute)
Aidomo Emakhu (56th Minute)
Frattesi (77th Minute)
Chaplin (83rd Minute)
Romain Esse (91st Minute)

Millwall travelled to Portman Road looking to record back to back League wins for the first time this season but nobody could have anticipated what was about to transpire before their very eyes.

In the 2nd minute Dane Scarlett who was playing against his former club jumped over the tackle of former Lion Jake Cooper who was part of the deal to bring Scarlett to the Den and then hit a vicious shot past Patterson to give the Lions the lead.

Ipswich responded by taking the game to the Lions and it was no surprise when another former Lion that was part of the deal Kevin Nesbit sprinted past the Millwall defence and his shot swerved past Trafford to bring the game back level in the 11th minute.

Both teams were going at each other and this game was end to end and nobody could tell who was going to get the next goal. In the 21st minute Romain Esse went passed Clark with ease before slotting the ball past the desperate Patterson hitting the post and the back of the net to score Millwall's 2nd goal and the teenagers first ever goal for the club.

Ipswich then dominated the next ten minutes before Millwall started to attack back. In the 32nd minute Nakamba made a Marvelous pass to Josip Stanišić who planted the ball into the top corner to make the score 3-1 to the away side and thats how the first half ended.

Ash Barkworth must have had some very choice words for his charges as Ipswich dominated the opening eleven minutes of the 2nd half culminating in Hirst lobbing the ball over the diving Trafford in the 56th minute to pull a goal back and the score to 3-2.

Millwall wanted to hold onto their lead and restored their two goal cushion straight from the restart Aidomo Emakhu run with the ball past the Ipswich defenders before unleashing a pile driver to make the score 4-2.

With just over 30 minutes to go surely Millwall would see the game out? well Ipswich had other ideas despite Millwall dominating the next 20 minutes.

Totally against the run of play Frattesi connected to a cross with a powerful header to bring the score back to 4-3.

Portman Road was rocking as they could sense yet another collapse by the South London outfit and in the 83rd minute James Trafford was lobbed yet again this time by Chaplin to bring the score level at 4-4.

Windebank was enraged at what he was seeing and kicked the shit out of bench chair to the delight of the Ipswich fans. However the Millwall players must have seen this as they then found another gear maybe out of fear of being kicked the shit out of in the dressing room.

Just after the board went up indicating a minimum of five minutes injury time and with the Ipswich fans singing 4-2 and you fucked it up Romain Esse barged Morsy off the ball before unleashing an unstoppable shot past Patterson to make the score 5-4.

The away end erupted, Romain Esse had all his team mates jump on him and Windebank raced up the touchline and slide onto his knees on the pitch!

With the Ipswich Town fans looking like a smack addict realising they no longer had a fix and the Millwall fans singing No One Likes us followed by Your Not Singing Anymore the referee brought the nine goal thriller to an end with Millwall securing the first back to back wins of the season and climbing up to 9th in the table.

Millwall had 56% possession and created 33 chances to Ipswich's 28 with both sides having 17 shots on target.

Windebank's Post Match Comments

What the hell just happened there I dont think my ticker will ever be able to see a game like that again. I have to admit I lost my composure a bit when we threw away that two goal lead and I will no doubt have to compensate Ipswich for the bench I destroyed in a rage. Then Romain pops up with a great goal and I have grass skid marks all over my suit as I went from rage to delirium.

My players have gone from all getting a black eye to now getting a day off tomorrow.

I am really concerned with the amount of goals we are conceding the 3rd highest in the League with 13 but how can I complain when we are the top scorers with fourteen.

I have to keep reminding myself that we have a very young squad with five defenders within a 141 abs at worse before rating up which should bring a lot more stability at the back.

We are going to have runs where we win a few and lose a few I have to remember that we have one of the worse squads on paper in the League and its all about being patient and letting these players develop as they will make mistakes. With that in mind I should be grateful that we are only three points off the top of the table and one point off the playoffs.

Thanks for a great game and near heart attack Ash and best of luck for the season mate.

January Word Count
Match Day 1 - 606 Words
FA Cup Round 1 - 806 Words
Welcome to the Lions Den Thread - 647 Words
Match Day 2 - 648 Words
Match Day 3 - 532 Words
FA Cup Round 2 - 291 Words
Match Day 4 - 472 Words
Match Day 5 - 385 Words
Match Day 6 - 494 Words
Match Day 7 - 938 Words
Welcome to the Lions Den Thread - Ten Competitive Games.... article - 765 Words

January Total Words - 6,584 Words

[Gary@Millwall]

FLT Round 2

Much Improved Stockport County Knock Lions Out Of Europe

Stockport County 2 Millwall 0

Scorers

Daka (10th Minute)
Anderson (51st Minute)

Following Stockport County's opening day defeat to the Lions Manager Mike Bridge has been busy in the transfer market feeling his squad with Premier League class players. On paper this should have been an easy win for the home side and despite Millwall giving them a game it was the home side who were victorious.

The opening exchanges were very even but in the 10th minute Wells found Daka with a great pass and unleashed a cracking drive to give Stockport County a 10th minute lead.

Both sides changed tactics with Millwall changing formation as well as gaining tactical advantage which saw Millwall dominate the rest of the first half without being able to bring the game level or get the goal their creativity deserved.

Six minutes into the 2nd half the game was virtually over when Wisdom found Anderson who craftly pushed the ball into the back of the net to send the home fans wild.

With Millwall attacking Stockport County decided to play on the counter and easily saw the game out to progress to the 3rd Round of the FLT Cup sending the Lions back home to South London with European Football over at the first attempt.

Millwall had 54% Possession with Stockport creating 11 chances to Millwall's 9 with 6 of Stockport's chances being on target compared to 4 for the Lions

Windebank's Post Match Comments

Stockport were to good for us today and no matter what we tried we could not find the back of the net. Mike has really improved his side since the opening game of the season and has some real Premiership class at his disposal even if the age of his squad is a bit higher now. With the players at his disposal it looks like Mike is really pushing to win trophies this season and he has a good chance of doing so.

I could not ask more from the team today and I need to rebuild confidence as we face Bristol City at home on Friday and that is going to be a tough game. Against all the odds I kept them in the Premier League last season (they were relegated due to not having a permanent manager) and are full of quality.

Well Done Bridge best of luck in your pursuit of the FLT Trophy.

February Word Count
FLT Round 2 - 411 Words


February Total Words - 411 Words

[Gary@Millwall]

Match Day 8

Windebank Booed As Lions Slapped Silly By Bristol City At The Den

Millwall 0 Bristol City 4

Scorers

Nuno Santos (31st Minute)
Pinnock (34th Minute)
Azmoun(44th Minute)
St_Juste (76th Minute Sent Off)
Williams (76th Minute)

Things turn sour at The Den tonight as Tim Brown's Bristol City totally destroyed the Lions in their own backyard.

Both sides setup 4-4-2 but Bristol City's counter attacking brand of football destroyed the more cultured Passing style Windebank adopted.

Question are starting to be asked whether Windebank is trying to get a fine tune out of players that do not have the ability to play the football he is trying to bring to The Den

The opening half hour was very even but in the 31st minute Pinnock run to the corner flagged and delivered a wonderful cross that Nuno Santos controlled and performed a audacious 30 yard lob to give Bristol City the lead.

Windebank ordered his players to attack and that is where they capitulated yet again at The Den to the disgust of the home faithful.

In the 34th minute Dane Scarlett was fouled by Naismith but the referee waved play on and Williams side stepped his marker before finding Pinnock who made no mistake in putting the ball past Trafford to make the score 2-0.

The Lions were shell shocked and in the 44th minute things got worse when Azmoun saw his shot take a wicked deflection and hit the back of the net to give the Bristol City side a comfortable 3-0 half time lead.

Boos rung around the Den and the players looked crestfallen as they walked of the pitch.

Millwall tried and tried on the 2nd half to get back in the game but Bristol City were not really troubled and the Den emptied in the 76th minute when Williams performed a scissors kick to rifle the ball into the top corner to make the score a resounding 4-0.

Bristol City fans were taunting the very sparse home crowd singing "is there a fire drill" as the Den emptied.

The few home fans that remained to the final whistle booed Windebank at the final whistle an the players trudged off with their heads down following the hammering they had just received from Tim Brown's Bristol City.

Bristol City had 70% possession creating 22 chances to Millwall's 12 of which 16 were on target to Millwall's 8.

Windebank's Post Match Comments

That was a disgraceful performance out there today with Bristol City smashing us off the park. I can only apologise to the fans who quite rightly made their feelings clear to what transpired on the pitch today.

We seem to be playing with fear at home and out home form is not good enough. I will need to pick the players up and work on things in training because losing 4-0 at home is not acceptable and that level of commitment and performance is not acceptable. I need to address this as soon as possible because a toxic Den is not an environment I want my players to play in but results at home have not been good enough and we had our arses served to us today.

Well Done Tim we could not touch your team today and a deserved three points.

February Word Count
FLT Round 2 - 411 Words
League Game 8 - 550 Words


February Total Words - 961 Words

[Gary@Millwall]

Match Day 9

Terriers Humble Lions As Millwall Fail To Score For Third Game In A Row

Huddersfield Town 1 Millwall 0

Scorers

Ahamada (53rd Minute)

The Lions visited James Bucknall's Huddersfield Town at the John Smith Stadium hoping to get a result following back to back defeats albeit in the FLT and League.

Both managers set their teams up to counter attack which led to an uninspiring game for the neutral to watch.

Millwall edged the very few actions of the first half but were unable to score a goal and the first half ended goalless with both sets of fans buying copious amounts of Red Bull to try and wake themselves up for the 2nd half.

Huddersfield Town came out for the 2nd half fired up and in the 53rd minute Seguin held the ball up before providing a pinpoint pass to the on rushing Ahamada who fired a great shot into the top corner to giver the Terriers the lead.

Millwall turned to hoof ball to try and counter the counter attacking football that had given Huddersfield the lead but it was a tactical masterclass by James Bucknall in the 65th minute when he ordered his side to attack that was the defining moment of the game.

The Huddersfield Town players took the game by the scruff of the neck and dominated from this moment on to safely see out the remainder of the game and secure a well deserved three points.

Huddersfield Town dominated possession with 57% and created slightly more chances with 9 to Millwall's 7 of which Huddersfield Town had 6 shots on target to Millwall's paltry 4.

Windebank's Post Match Comments

Another disappointing result and game where we have failed to score a goal making it three games in a row. Morale is very low in the dressing room as these young players struggle to adapt to Championship life. We need to get the confidence back in the team and not only start to create chances but also but the ball in the back of the net.

Today's performance was substandard but credit has to go to James as his team deserved the three points today.

We have a tough game against Premier League Sheffield Wednesday at The Den on Wednesday and we are going to need to be at our best if we are to have any chance of progressing to the Quarter Finals.

February Word Count
FLT Round 2 - 411 Words
League Game 8 - 550 Words
League Game 9 - 402 Words


February Total Words - 1,363 Words

[Gary@Millwall]

FA Cup Round 2

Wonderkid Scarlett Sends Millwall Into The Hat For The 3rd Round

Lincoln City 0 Millwall 1

Scorers

Dane Scarlett (2nd Minute)

Following back to back League Defeats Millwall were looking to get back to winning ways against League 1 side Lincoln City at the Sincil Bank Stadium.

Things could not have started any better for the South London outfit with Marvelous Nakamba delivering an in swinging cross that Dane Scarlett controlled before nutmegging Jensen to give the Lions a 2nd minute lead.

The question now was could Millwall actually keep a clean sheet for the first time this season or would they add to their early lead.

Millwall were having the better of the game which was a real blood and thunder end to end spectacle with both sides hitting the woodwork or their keepers being equal to whatever was thrown at them.

The Millwall fans were ecstatic to see James Trafford keep a clean sheet in a man of the match performance as they progress to the 3rd round of the FA Cup.

Millwall dominated possession with 60% and created 20 shots to Lincoln's 17 shots with Lions having 10 shots on target to Lincoln's 9.

Windebank's Post Match Comments

Finally a clean sheet and that should do man of the match James Trafford's confidence the world of good as well as the backline.

Again we have created a lot of chances and had half of them on target so its a shame we only scored one goal. However, the objective here was to get in the next round as we really need the £2.5m gate money and all we can hope for is a home tie as there is real quality left in this competition.

February Word Count
FLT Round 2 - 411 Words
League Game 8 - 550 Words
League Game 9 - 402 Words
FA Cup Round 2 - 291 Words

February Total Words - 1,654 Words

[Gary@Millwall]

FA Cup Round 3

Premier League Owls Quality Too Much For Brave Lions

Millwall 2 Sheffield Wednesday 4

Scorers

Joao Pedro (9th Minute)
Marvelous Nakamba (13th Minute)
Oli Watkins (29th Minute)
Simon Terodde (69th Minute)
Dubois (70th Minute)
Joao Pedro (72nd Minute)

Cup football returned to The Den with Premier League Sheffield Wednesday being the visitors as both sides tried to book a place in the Quarter Finals of the FA Cup.

With Sheffield Wednesday's worse player being better rated than Eight of Millwall's Ten outfield players it would be a big upset if the Lions were to progress to the next round.

Mike Bradwell set his Owls up to play Counter Attacking football with Windebank wanting to bring the hostile Den crowd into play opted to play Attacking with Four Forwards.

Millwall dominated the opening exchanges but it was The Owls who took the lead with their first action of the game when Oli Watkins headed the ball to Joao Pedro who slide the ball under the outrushing Trafford to make the score 1-0 in the 9th minute.

The Lions had their tails up and forced a corner in the 11th minute but despite a lot of shirt pulling by the dirty Yorkshire outfit and with the home faithful not surprised the referee refused to give a penalty.

Ander Guevara found Marvelous Nakamba in the 13th minute with a great pass and the midfielder playing as a striker unleashed an absolute beauty that slammed into the top corner to send The Den wild.

The game really got going and was an end to end spectacle but it was the Owls that retook the lead when Fred found Oli Watkins whose powerful shot hit the post and nestled in the back of the net.

Millwall were rattled and it was all Sheffield Wednesday until half time but somehow the half ended 2-1 and Millwall were still in the game.

Millwall came out for the 2nd half and really took the game to Sheffield Wednesday and in the 69th minute got the rewards their play warranted, Romain Esse roasted Targett and delivered a great ball to Simon Terodde who made no mistake with a curling effort to draw the game level.

The Den was rocking for exactly two minutes when Fred made a great cross field pass to Dubois who volleyed Sheffield Wednesday back into the lead.

After prolonged celebrations and in the next action of the game Targett found Joao Pedro who made no mistake to get his 2nd on the game and Sheffield Wednesday 4th to put the tie to bed and send the Yorkshire outfit into the FA Cup Quarter Finals.

Sheffield Wednesday had 62% possession and created 15 chances to Millwall's 9 with 13 of them being on target to Millwall's 7.

Windebank's Post Match Comments

I can't fault the players efforts today we went for against an established Premier League side and apart for two minutes of madness gave them a game they wont forget. At the end of the day Sheffield Wednesday's class shone through and we have to be happy with our performance. To get to the third round of the FA Cup in our first season in FFO is a great achievement and we need to use this as a springboard to start getting consistent results in the League.

Well Played Mike and best of luck for the rest of the cup.

February Word Count
FLT Round 2 - 411 Words
League Game 8 - 550 Words
League Game 9 - 402 Words
FA Cup Round 2 - 291 Words
FA Cup Round 3 - 569 Words

February Total Words - 2,223 Words

[Gary@Millwall]

Match Day 10

Lions Get Impressive Win At The Riverside

Middlesbrough 1 Millwall 3

Scorers

Jeremiah Israël St. Juste (18th Minute)
Aidomo Emakhu (35th Minute)
Fry (42nd Minute)
Duncan Watmore (82nd Minute)

The Lions visited the Riverside Stadium really needing a win after amassing only 10 points from a possible 27 and being knocked out of all cup competitions as well as suffering back to back League defeats.

With Millwall having tactical advantage they slightly edged the opening stages and took the lead in the 18th minute when Billy Mitchell found Jeremiah Israël St. Juste who headed the cross straight into the back of the Middlesbrough net.

Millwall were denied a penalty a minute later and the game became a end to end spectacle culminating in who's your daddy Kabadayi finding Aidomo Emakhu with a delicious pass with the Millwall striker nutmegging the Boro keeper to send the away faithful wild in the 35th minute.

Both sides switched tactics with Boro going on the attack and Millwall applying a more measured passing approach. Despite Millwall creating more opportunities it was Boro who scored against the run of play just before half time with Crooks finding Fry who made no mistake to half the deficit in the 42nd minute.

Millwall regained tactical advantage going back to the counter attack but the half time whistle went with the Lions leading 2-1.

Middlesbrough dominated the opening fifteen minutes of the 2nd half prompting Windebank to make three changes in the 60th minute with Duncan Watmore replacing goal scorer Emakhu, wonderkid Dane Scarlett replacing the Big Fucking German Terrode and Balbuena replacing Stanisic in defence.

The changes added new energy into the Lions and they started to get back into the game and as the minutes ticked by the Lions were really grabbing the game by the scruff of the neck.

The pressure finally told in the 82nd minute when Dane Scarlett spotted Duncan Watmore in acres of space with Watmore seeing his tame effort slip through the desperate Boro's keepers hands to give Millwall a 3-1 lead.

Millwall easily saw the remaining last ten minutes of the game out to secure their forth League win of the season.

Millwall had 56% possession and created 17 chances to Boro's 15 with 12 of Millwalls chances being on target to Boro's 9.

Windebank's Post Match Comments

That was a much needed victory out there today and a very good performance against a side that will be challenging for promotion this season with the quality of players they have at their disposal.

We have been playing well for most of the season so far but have not been getting the results our play has warranted. I ask the fans to remain patient but totally understand this is a results governed business and hopefully today's performance and three points sends them home down the motorway with a bid smile on their faces.

March Media
Game 10 - 485 Words

[Gary@Millwall]

Match Day 11

Windebank Suffers Yet Another Home Defeat In Drab Game Against The Foxes

Millwall 1 Leicester City 2

Scorers

Simeone(47th Minute Penalty)
Eriksen(54th Minute)
Kyle Walker (74th Minute)

In a very subdued Den following only one home win in four attempts the Lions struggled to enforce their game in a dour match against the Foxes.

With both sides setting up to counter each other the opening 35 minutes were even but with no real actions to talk about. Windebank decided to change formation and opted for the Long Ball tactic to gain tactical advantage and try and get a much needed home win. It did not get the desired effect and a very boring first half came to an end with the score 0-0.

In the first action of the 2nd half Leicester City were gifted a penalty when James Trafford got penalised for a clumsy challenge on Dunk and Simeone made no mistake from the spot to give the Foxes the lead.

An enraged Windebank barked at his players to attack and had a mini flurry of attacking without being able to hit the back of the onion bag.

Leicester City were getting frustrated and the Den erupted in fury when the referee only warned goal scorer Simeone after he spat in Emakhu's face. Three minutes later the disgusting Foxes doubled their lead when Henderson flicked the ball to Eriksen who planted the ball into the back of the net.

Millwall gained tactical advantage again as they switched to passing with the Foxes employing the Normal tactic.

Strangely Leicester City were still having the majority of the game but despite this the Lions half the deficit against the run of play when Disasi crossed the ball to the rampaging Kyle Walker who thundered the ball into the back of the Net in the 74th minute.

Leicester City parked the bus and saw the remaining 15 minutes out with ease to inflict back to back home defeats and the third home defeat of the season on the Lions.

The Foxes had 58% possession and created 8 chances to the Lions 4 with the Foxes having 6 shots on target to the Lions 4.

Windebank's Post Match Comments

Well that was a pile of shit performance and our home form is just not good enough securing only 4 points from a possible 15 is disgusting and I really need to look at myself and the formations and tactics I am playing.

I can only apologise to the fans and let them know that these results and that shit performance today cannot happen again. The players have already been told they will be in training tomorrow as I don't want to see such a limp performance at the Den again.

March Media
Game 10 - 485 Words
Game 11 - 460 Words