Exeter City 0 Cardiff City 3.

Tuesday 11 November 2002.

LDV Vans Trophy Round Two

So City succumb to a superior Cardiff side 3-0 with a flaccid display at a crisp and chilly Park. The game started in fairly meek fashion with both sides sharing the opening exchanges but failing to trouble either keeper.

City retained decent amounts of possession as did Cardiff, but the training ground mentality prevailed with both sides seemingly more interested in the coming weekend's action rather than the more pressing matter of the game they were attempting to play.

No shots, no action, no decent passing and no tackles. From either side. Although the ref did see fit to book players for seemingly innocuous niggly fouls. Nothing really warranted more than a telling off. The one incident of note was however a superb double save from Big Kev when one of their forwards burst through one on one. The big man stayed strong as a pile driver was let loose towards him and then had the presence of mind to tip the rebound away before the striker could come back for seconds.

The second half saw Cardiff start to assert some authority on the game, and City withdrawing further and further into their own half. Which reminds me - an annoying Foxy trait is beginning to creep back in whereby every player stays deep in their own half at set pieces leaving nobody up near the half way line. Someone bangs it up the park and there's nobody there so our opponents are free to build another attack.

Despite their dominance and superiority, there was nothing cultured about the opening goal. Bazza (who had a pretty decent game it has to be said) and Buxton both decided the other one could mark the advancing forward and when the ball duly arrived at his feet on the edge of the box there was a gap big enough to drive not just one bus but the entire Stagecoach fleet through it.

The forward then had plenty of time to turn and ease the ball past a stranded and bemused Kev. City then sparkled into a coma and let Cardiff run the show how they felt. Not long after, another forward found his run into the box impeded by Ampadu and a penalty ensued. No trouble for them to blast the ball past Kev.

Finally something to lift the crowd with Moor introduced for the last twenty minutes in place of Coppinger. No matter, other than a couple of long range efforts from Moor, Barnard and Pettefer, the Cardiff goalie may as well have stayed at home.

McNab's (and ours) misery was complete deep into stoppage time when an ever willing runner was allowed to get round the back of Hiley and cross for the gangly and so far ordinary Fortune-West to butt home unchallenged from the six yard line.

Exeter: Miller, McConnell, Pilkington, Buxton, Hiley, Ampadu, Cronin, Pettefer, Barnard, Flack, Coppinger. Subs: Fraser, Roscoe, Curran, Moor, Alcide.

Cardiff: Margetson, Green, Collins, Simpkins, Barker, Legg, Bonner, Hamilton, Bowen, Fortune-West, Campbell. Subs: Alexander, Boland, Maxwell, Thorne, Croft.

Referee: P Walton (Northamptonshire)

Attendance  1360