Papa John's Trophy
Tuesday 5th October 2021
Scunthorpe United have a lot more things to be concerned about than the Papa John’s Trophy right now, but they were guilty of not taking their chances in this defeat to Rotherham United.
Much of the damage was done early on as the Iron’s defensive frailties were massively exposed twice inside the opening 20 minutes; Will Grigg converting unmarked from a Wes Harding cross to put Rotherham ahead before Freddie Ladapo doubled their lead with a powerful header.
A cricket score seemed possible at this point though, in fairness, Scunny’s performance after falling 2-0 behind actually wasn’t that bad. The problem was they just lacked any sort of clinical finishing and ruthlessness with the several opportunities they had - and by comparison, Rotherham never needed a second invitation to make the most of what they created infront of goal.
Devarn Green, Harry Wood and Jordan Hallam all went close either side of half-time before hopes of an unlikely comeback were heightened when Ryan Loft rounded off a neat move (which started with Alfie Beestin winning the ball back midway inside the hosts’ half) and fired past Millers ‘keeper Josh Vickers to pull one back for the visitors.
However, it wasn’t to be because Kieran Sadlier teed up Hakeem Odoffin for a strike from distance which put Rotherham 3-1 up with less than 10 minutes remaining - causing two silly idiots amongst Scunny’s 134 travelling contingent to plunge into a total meltdown and square up to stewards which, unsurprisingly, resulted in their early removal from the stadium!
The pair missed Michael Smith's injury-time goal which added a slightly flattering look to a scoreline which suggested a more one-sided game than what it was in reality.
Barring a Carol Vorderman-type mathematician who’d point out that Rotherham haven't yet qualified mathematcally for the knockout stages, they're all but there in reality - partly thanks to an emphatic 6-0 win at Doncaster Rovers in last month's group stage game.
The last time Rotherham beat Scunthorpe at the New York Stadium, they booked a trip to Wembley in the process and there is no doubting the depth of quality in the Millers ranks at this present time. It wouldn’t surprise me whatsoever if they ended up doing well in this competition this season - leading to a few dreams about another fixture under the arch in North-West London.
A lot can be said (and already has been said) of Scunny’s predicament right now - especially as to whether their squad has enough depth, quality and necessary ingredients to stay in the Football League.
I don't know the specific's of what is or isn't going on behind-the-scenes at Glanford Park when it comes to the ownership, but having experience a relegation battle first-hand (at Mansfield Town in 2014/15 when we narrowly avoided relegation from League Two despite not reaching 50 points or winning a game by more than a solitary goal all season long), then I know how stressful it can be - especially for those working at the club who'll experience a host of emotions after every win, draw or defeat and be worried about potential redundancies should the worst happen!
Fingers should rightly be pointed towards the very top of the club's hierarchy for allowing the present predicament to develop. It shouldn't have happened and it could have been avoided yet the budget cuts, struggles in League Two over the past few seasons and turnover of players has certainly led to a lingering sense of inevitability about the future.
Nevertheless, the players (who've been recruited as a direct consequence of what the budget allows) deserve everyone's support and even, to some extent, Neil Cox. His head is on the chopping block because of results although he'll be working against a backdrop of avoidable pressures and politics which just doesn't help.
Whether the players are good enough is subjective - some will be (Ryan Loft was the stand-out performer in this game), others won't be and then there'll be those that split opinion. I feel especially sorry for the younger lads who've grauated through the SUFC academy set-up and are talented and will learn loads at this stage of their development, yet are in an an environment where the club (for certain reasons) is pulling itself apart. For those who do feature regularly, every defeat will hurt their professional pride though and, ultimately, the players will be the ones who'll determine whether Scunthorpe United remain in the Football League at the end of this season.
New signings, without any shadow of a doubt, would breath some fresh air into a squad and help them. Regardless of that, my hope is that Scunny can somehow stay up this season and then embark on the top-to-bottom overhaul which is desperately needed - and it starts at the very top! The good people who are employed at SUFC, whose life it is, deserve better than to be constantly worried or anxious about what the threat of the 'R' word means for their incomes and families.
It's all a very far cry and sorry state from what Scunthorpe United Football Club stood for not that long ago; a small club where everyone - from the directors to the football-related personnel to the fans could buy into an easy-to-see project which had an end goal objective.
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