I reclined into my seat, took a deep lungful of air and took a good look round at the smiling happy faces of my fellow fans. The hopelessly deluded woman who sits behind me was suddenly as quiet as a mouse. The over-enthusiastic gent who sits in front of me and commentates the whole game to himself was somehow less annoying than usual. Even the arch Mama hater who sits next to me and insists on booing his name every time it's read out, seemed positively jovial. Birds were chirping, the sun was shining and everything was right with the world.
This felt weird.
I'm not used to this. I'm used to feeling many things at football, usually a mix of misery, fear, nervousness and apprehension, but enjoyment....this is all new. I've often been criticised for my pessimism at Stoke games, and it's true, I do always assume we are going to mess it all up. I'm not sure how it all began, numerous last minute goals conceded and numerous hopes shattered have left me naturally wary of taking a lead. "We need another to be sure" is my usual response to Stoke scoring first as I lean gingerly back into my seat and prepare to adopt my patented 'Stoke-holding onto a lead' position of head in hands.
Today though, we were never in any danger of throwing it away. We were dominating the game and even before Samba was given his marching orders for Rovers, we were looking incredibly comfortable. This was of course aided by the fact that Blackburn could well have been the worst team we've seen at the Britannia since our entry in the Premier League. Isn't Big Sam supposed to produce tough and rugged sides? The type of side that makes commentators say things like "you know what you are going to get with a Big Sam side"! It would appear not.
Today Blackburn were weak at the back, utterly devoid of ideas going forward and may or may not have had a midfield on the pitch, I will need to double check that fact to be sure. Either way, Stoke ran them ragged and could easily have scored several more.
I'm hoping one lesson Tony will take away from this game will be that it is ok to really go for it at home against a fellow mid/lower table side. I say 'really go for it' as this is the term used by Stoke City coach Mark O'Connor to describe, on Radio Stoke before the game, the team we would be putting out to face Blackburn. 'Really going for it', thems fighting words Mark, what the devil are you going to do!
It turns out, 'really going for it', in Stoke terms, means....playing a winger on either flank. Wow. Talk about all guns blazing. Isn't that what most teams do week in week out? Only in a Pulis side would the notion of playing wide men on either side, rather than one winger and a central midfielder playing out of position, be considered 'going for it'. Whatever next Tone? It'll be full backs playing at full back next rather than centre halves!!! No, no, that's just crazy talk.
In all seriousness though, with Whitehead and Delap in the middle, and Lawrence and Etherington on either wing, Stoke were playing about as attacking a formation as Tone will allows us to play, and it was a decision that clearly reaped dividends against a poor Blackburn side.
After a superbly taken volley by Danny Higginbotham put us into the lead, Stoke began to look increasingly in control and as decisive going forward as we have been all season. Shortly before the half time break a superb Etherington cross was bundled over the line by big Mama to the delight of the Potters faithful (except of course the Mama hater who sits near me, who begrudgingly stood up and could barely conceal his disappointment).
Etherington has been playing out of skin recently and there has been talk amongst many Stoke fans of him being due an England call up. Many claim if he played for a more fashionable club he would be guaranteed a look in on current form. This could well be the case and it is undeniable that the winger has been in the form of his life the past 2 or 3 months. I fear however, that he will unfortunately continue to be overlooked by Fabio, as the likes of Steven Gerrard, and Joe Cole, to name but two, will always be ahead of him in the pecking order. For now I'm just happy he plays for us and is in the form he is in. Does his form warrant England consideration? Yes, definitely. Will he receive and England call up any time soon? Don't count on it.
Matty capped a scintillating display with a quality solo goal which saw him jink past a bunch of despairing Rovers defenders before cutting inside and curling the ball deftly around an outstretched Robinson in the Blackburn goal. Three goals to the good, and if it wasn't for several last ditch goal line clearances from the visitors, it could have been more.
As we sauntered away from the ground bathed in the sweet blissful euphoria that only a comfortable win can produce, our conversation turned to our next four upcoming home games. Man City, Arsenal, Villa and Spurs. 4 of the top 7 teams, all desperate for points to secure Champions League football. It is a daunting task, but it is worth remembering that in these four fixtures last season we got four wins and witnessed four of the most memorable games in the Britannia's history. Remember Mama's last minute goal against Villa? (I bet that bloke near me almost had a stroke when that went in). Remember the roar that went round the ground on 70 minutes against City as the boys dug in with only 10 men? Remember the relief at the final whistle as we held on against both London rivals?
Realistically, it is unlikely we will see such memorable games again this season. Footballing lightning very rarely strikes twice in the same footballing place (not a saying I know, but go with it.) At the Brit though we are more than a match for any travelling side, and I honestly think we can get two wins and two draws from those games if we play like we did against Rovers.
I'd forgotten what it felt like to cruise to victory, and if I'm honest, it's nowhere near as exciting as snatching victory out of nowhere in a hotly contested match, but for this one time, it was an unexpected treat.
Blackburn Rovers.....can we play you every week?
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