We were still top of the table but Huddersfield were only two points behind us. Promotion is almost gained, we just have to win a few more games…
And now, the big final! Everton were the Carling Cup holders and they won the FA Cup too last season. They had a solid team, good talent in midfield and a very strong defense, everybody said that our chances of winning the game were quite slim. I sent in my best eleven players available at that moment and told them to fight, it was our only chance.
The first half was fairly even but Everton made the difference with two long range shots, from 30 and 35 yards out, Schmeichel tried to parry them but he couldn’t, those were perfect shots. It was frustrating because we didn’t play too bad. We tried to push forward in the second half but Everton had no problems with our attacks, they were stopping us easily and creating great chances on counter attacks. There wasn’t much we could do, just a consolation goal scored by Szalai, too little too late… It was a beautiful dream but Everton proved to be a much better team, I felt powerless throughout the game.
We had to get back to the League One games in March, it will be the decisive month for promotion. There will be quite a lot of games to play and we already have a few injured players, I hope there won’t be more long term injuries…
That was it, I still feel bad about that final but there was nothing we could to, Everton outplayed us 80 minutes out of 90. Hopefully we’ll reach the final again in the next few seasons and maybe we won’t miss the chance to win the trophy again. See you soon with the March update, stay tuned!
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Wilko
14 декабря, 2009 at 17:26
Sorry mate but im confused or im reading different story but in your November story when you beat Liverpool you said and showed that you were playing Hull in both FA Cup and Semis in Carling Cup but instead you played Preston and Fulham??Also Everton where meant to play Wolves but they played Man City??What happened mate you lose against Hull and started over???
eddie eddie
14 декабря, 2009 at 17:32
Such a shame that you lost the final but I am sure that you will get a chance to win it again good luck next month.
Johnny Karp
14 декабря, 2009 at 17:36
@Wilko
Here’s what happened: link ;)
@Eddie
Thanks mate, I’m still thinking if there was a way to beat Everton… I guess we had no chance but painful defeats can make you stronger sometimes.
Dave
14 декабря, 2009 at 18:58
Unlucky mate with the final but even getting there was still an achievement. How did the board and fans feel about getting that far?
Johnny Karp
14 декабря, 2009 at 19:03
Thanks Dave. The minimum expectation at the beginning of the season was the third round, so the board and the fans were happy that we achieved more than expected. The fans were disappointed after the Everton game though, maybe a narrow defeat would have been better for them.
Kevin
14 декабря, 2009 at 22:39
Fantastic effort getting a team like Notts Co to a Cup Final and I’m sure you will gain promotion to the Championship, but most likely will take the title.
I’m really enjoying all your updates and have given up with «Sortitoutsi» for inspiration and just come straight here instead. Great writng too!
By the way the snow had all melted the other day by the time I got home. Love it!
(I’m in Canada)
Lye
15 декабря, 2009 at 02:27
Hello mate, it was remarkable to reach the final even though the defeat, Everton is a difficult opposition to play against. After you get promoted and buy some quality players, i believe you will do better in the cup games.
Johnny Karp
15 декабря, 2009 at 09:38
@Lye
Thanks for the comment mate. We were a bit lucky to get to the final but I expected at least a narrow defeat. Unfortunately Everton were quite determined to win it and they gave us no chance to get out of there in one piece.
@Kevin
Thanks for the compliment Kevin, the fact that you prefer a small blog like mine to a huge site like Sortitoutsi is a nice thing to hear :) Somehow I was quite sure you’re in Canada, whenever I hear «shoveling snow» I automatically think about Canada for some reason :)