So far so good…

The personal musings of Chris Sumner 

Since I last wrote, we’ve picked up another 6 points, with a great 2-0 away win at Carlisle United and of course Saturday’s last-gasp 2-1 win over Reading. Picking up 10 points out of a possible 15 is a solid start in my book, and considering 50 points is usually the benchmark for staying up, we’re a fifth of the way there already having played some tough teams too!

Whilst in Norway, I had the opportunity to go up the Skylift in a place called Loen, and at the top unveiled the ECFC flag I had brought with me as you can see in the picture accompanying this article. Bar one shout of ‘Green Army’ when at one of the ports (can’t help themselves those Janners can they!), most people who saw me on my cruise ship wearing City attire were very complimentary, asking how we’d started and wishing us well for the season. It was great to be able to give a good report of our impressive start, and long may that continue.

Also last week saw Jay Stansfield sign on loan for Birmingham City for the season. I’m looking forward to seeing how well his game develops in the Championship, and of course his last minute winner against our green neighbours on Saturday was surely written in the stars! Birmingham are a club going places having just been taken over by an American consortium, including NFL legend Tom Brady, so Jay could end up being a key part of their push up the table possibly to promotion, but who knows? It’s still very early days of course.

Having arrived back in the UK early on Saturday morning, it was a race against time to get back for our home clash with Reading at 3pm. Having purchased a season ticket this season, I wanted to make sure I got back to make the most of it and at around 2pm we arrived back in Exeter, dumped our bags home and headed straight for SJP. I finally managed to get my hands on a third shirt too as stock had been replenished whilst I was away, before heading into the ground.

I said before the game I’d happily take a point, but in the first half we were on the front foot creating a plethora of chances. Ilmari Niskanen, making his debut for City, put an amazing shift in down the right hand side where he wouldn’t stop running, and in the second half he switched to the left, so having that versatility could be a very big bonus for us going forward. Will Aimson opened the scoring with a header for his second of the season before Reading equalised on the stroke of half time.

Caroll and Trevitt (aka the Wonderful Brothers as christened by David Earl) put in another great shift in the middle, and again Alex Hartridge ended up with a man of the match award. But step up substitute Reece Cole, who in the 93rd minute took a punt on the edge of the box which rifled past the Reading goalkeeper and sealed all three points for the Grecians.

After the game, it looked apparent to many that Sam Nombe may well have played his last game for the club. He was hugged by many players at the end, and spent a lot longer than normal in front of the Bank at the end of the game. As I write this, he’s being heavily linked with a move to Rotherham United and a reunion with Matt Taylor, so hopefully if he does go we’ll get a decent wedge, as I believe MK have a pretty hefty sell-on clause that they’d be entitled to. I’ll be sad to see him go, but it’s part and parcel of being a footballer. As I’ve said before, it’s a short career and as with many of us in normal working life, you sometimes feel that the time is right for a new challenge and to prove yourself higher up the chain. I had a photo with him post-match on Saturday, and if he does go before Friday’s deadline then he leaves with my thanks and best wishes for the future.

I write this hours before our second round Carabao Cup game with Stevenage, which presents a fantastic chance for the club to get to Round 3 for the first time since 1989, so considering I’ve been a fan since 1997 it’s something I have never seen happen. Steve Evans, the Stevenage manager, who of course is a bit of a pantomime villain in the football world, is currently linked to the vacant job at Hibernian in Scotland, so whether that may unsettle them this evening remains to be seen. Being a Scotsman himself, it wouldn’t surprise me if he does decide to take up the challenge there.

As for us tonight, I expect there’ll be a few changes with half an eye on our game at Burton Albion on Saturday, where of course we will come up against a few familiar faces. Considering it’s a side in our division, it’s definitely a winnable fixture and hopefully we’ll give a good account of ourselves. It’ll be interesting to see the line-up if there’s no Nombe with James Scott currently out injured at the moment. It may pave the way for Sonny Cox to get a few more opportunities, but I’d imagine GC will have some irons in the fire ahead of Friday’s deadline, as considering the links in recent weeks the impending departure of Nombe is not overly surprising. Players come and go, but us fans are a constant and there could be new heroes creeping around the corner pulling on the red and white.

The rollercoaster continues, and I’m loving the ride so far. UTC.