We’ve all been there. You get home at the end of a long day and think, "I wish I had stayed in bed", and believe me this really was one of those days.
The 8:30am leave had been brought forward to 8:00am which meant the players and staff had been ordered to meet at the Hotel for 7:45am. So when the time to leave had come and gone, and there was still no sign of top goal scorer Richard Kear and fellow strike partner Jason Welsh, the manager and the rest of the assembled squad and supporters had begun to get restless.
"Boss its Jason, I’m really sorry my alarm didn’t go off and I’m just leaving Cardiff".
Not the phone call Mark Collier was looking for, knowing, at best, his missing players would not be at the hotel for another hour. The decision was made to go on without the duo and let them catch us up by stopping in Oxford.
Now when league teams set off on an away day, they may pick up the paper, reading remarks of supporters and pundits on their chances and quickly forgetting them. But this is non-league, and the Marine players get the benefit of their travelling supporters company on the team coach.
"Just to let you lot know, I’m not giving up my Saturday, spending a total of eight hours on this coach for the fun of it, I expect a result today", proclaims 80-year-old supporter Mrs Garland.
A 45-minute stop in Oxford saw the missing two catch us up, and we were now good to, eventually arriving at King’s Lynn in good time. Although very few people will have heard of King’s Lynn, they are a big non-league club with a proud history, last season entertaining Oldham in the second round proper of the FA Cup. It’s a club whose fans harbour ambitions of league status, and turn out in large numbers week in, week out. After being told the club shop grosses over £50k a year you could understand why Lynn maybe feel they are not playing in a division befitting their history and support.
Marine were without two key players in defender Leigh Henry and midfielder Gary Horgan so Mark Collier had to shuffle his pack, seeing a number of players playing in unfamiliar positions, and against the league leaders this was sure to be a tough afternoon.
The first half was a reasonably even affair with Marine having the better of the early chances, Ashleigh Edenborough twice going close in the opening minutes. The home side’s Michael Frew was looking lively on the right hand side of midfield and was causing Danny Allen real problems with his pace and skill. It was Frew who set up Lynn’s first chance of the game with Jack Defty heading a fierce cross wide of the upright.
As the first half wore on the game Marine’s injury woes continued with leading marksman Richard Kear seeing his day ended with a re-occurrence of a hip injury, this in turn resulting in Marine losing their most threatening forward option.
The opening goal of the game arrived five minutes before the break. Joe Francis, who has courted the interest of several league clubs, twice cut inside before delivering a pin point cross to the back post that Frew struck home.
Deep in to stoppage time at the end of the first half Marine drew level courtesy of a first class strike from Chris Taylor. Taylor was afforded space 20 yards out and curled a delightful left footed strike past keeper Scott Howie in to the top corner. Without question the goal of the game.
Unfortunately for the visitors Lynn struck back straight from kick off. Frew again got the better of Allen and he picked out Defty who had eluded his marker at the back post and restored his side’s lead with the last kick of the half.
Marine would’ve felt hard done by to be behind at half time, but not for the first time this season lapses in concentration had gifted their opponent’s goals in game that they could ill afford mistakes. The second 45 minutes is up there with the most bemusing halves of football I have seen, and no one inside the ground could’ve predicted what was to come after such a tight first half.
Within in minutes of the restart Marine went close to again drawing level but Kyle Lapham’s long range effort was well held by Howie. Lynn, however, found an opening through Frew, who again delivered a perfect cross to find Francis, who netted his side’s third of the game on 50 minutes.
In their debut season in the British Gas Business Premier League Marine have both won plaudits and gained critics with a philosophy of playing passing football no matter what. Mark Collier sends his sides out with the motto "Play, Play, Play" and this will produce match winning performances or defensive horror shows, reflected in his side having the least number of draws of any in the division.
With his side flowing forward in search of getting a goal back they were picked apart on the counter, and when Taylor upended Defty in the box on 63 minutes the game was put beyond doubt, Francis despatching the resulting spot kick for 4-1.
A glaring miss from Defty and a goal line clearance from Chris Thompson saw the score temporarily remain at 4-1, but it was a matter of delaying the inevitable with Lynn playing superb football. They got their fifth on 73 minutes when Matt Nolan headed home after Frew’s effort had hit the cross bar.
Marine had further chances to restore some pride but a combination of keeper and poor finishing saw the chances go begging. The rout was completed on 80 minutes through Kearan Deane, whose 25-yard strike somehow made its way through a packed box and into the bottom corner.
In truth Lynn could’ve added further goals but so could have Marine. Substitute Mark Draycott was first denied what would’ve been a superb goal by the cross bar, and then the same player saw keeper Howie come out on top in a one on one.
The final whistle brought an end to an unusual game that saw Marine defensively hit self destruct despite creating numerous chances going forward. A reporter in the press box alongside me uttered: "10-6 would’ve a been a more appropriate score line!"
A downbeat squad made their way back onto the coach for the four hour journey home.
"This is not news you are going to want to hear" announces the coach driver, "unfortunately there appears to be a problem with the coach and we are not going anywhere in this tonight."
An hour and a half later a second coach was with us just enough time for Mrs Garland to ‘consult’ the squad on the day’s performance.
"What on earth have you lot got to say for yourselves?"
This was a lady who demanded answers, but the players couldn’t muster much of a response.
"I’d tell you what I thought of it but the language would be too bad" she quipped.
Post-match analysis over we were finally on our way home, arriving back in Swindon just before midnight.
Hours of waiting for missing players and a new coach, a 400 mile round trip and a 6-1 defeat….when Jason Welsh rang to say his alarm had not gone off maybe this was a signal to us all that this was going to be one of those days… the ones where you should’ve just stayed in bed!
LEIGH MOORE
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