Stoke City 0 - West Bromwich Albion 1

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Ratings submitted so far: 19

Ancient Baggie:

Really solid away performance and 3 good points. Interesting to see how we set up today with the latest coming and going's but I think in general we've come out better off than we were. Our defence looks better without Furlong and we now have options in that position and the flexibility to play different systems if required. I think we mixed playing short and long well when required and apart from not being quite sharp enough in front of goal could easily have won more comfortably.

Great start and obviously a long season ahead but cautiously optimistic COYB

Brendan Clegg:

Absolutely brilliant win on the road to keep us undefeated in the league.

I have to say… it was unexpected given the ins and outs this week and then seeing that Grant and Bielik were out too. We look to have done some brilliant business but the level of change is still extremely difficult to manage.

As supporters, it’s a little bit strange when there are so many new players in your team. Established players, be they stale stalwarts or rising stars, do help the fans have an affinity with the team - good or bad - and there is a level of unknown and a lack of what feels like going through highs and lows with new players that creates a bond with the team.

One way to mitigate that though is to sign players who are lions and leaders; players who will give everything straight away and immediately get the crowd onside.

And seeing that starting 11 today with Campbell, Phillips, Mepham and Heggeboe showing those qualities alongside those like Molumby and Wallace who both have that in buckets, whatever other limitations they may have, you just felt like we’d have a go here.

I’ve singled those players out but it doesn’t mean the likes of Price or Styles won’t run all day, and of other signings Bielik is 100% a leader and Bany looks like he keeps injuring himself by pushing himself to the limit; I think we’re seeing something In the kind of players we’re signing and it’s massively positive.

Anyway back to the game and I would describe it as a team that looked really seasoned in Championship away games. Win the wars, defend for your life, cover the ground and really earn the right. We’d have been at least 10 points better off last season had we had the leaders and resilience to play like this away.

Our base level enabled us to take the lead through a goalkeeping error and good reactions from Phillips. From there, without being particularly great quality-wise we had something to hold and we generally did it superbly, limiting Stoke’s chances, riding our luck a little bit but at the same time carrying a threat that we might nick another.

There were again flashes of patterns of quality and fast play that look great if we can develop them, but with a brand new defence and no Fellows we were never going to be fluid. It feels like a special result that buys us time to settle some of these players in, and I’m sure there are a couple more to come.

Back to that affinity and bond between the players and fans - the celebrations after the whistle were just great and will help with that. All the players and subs gave it everything, there were no shirkers or hiders and that’s all we ask for. There was a lot to like in this game.

• Griffiths - 7 Has doubters, and I’ll hold my hands up to say I’m one, but has shown growth in every game this season so far. Belief, confidence and authority are that last 10% he needs to make it, results and performances like today will help.
• Campbell - 8 Big, quick, aggressive, fearless. Very raw but won’t be an easy game for any opponent.
• Phillips - 8 A big leader, scored a goal. Commanding.
• Mepham - 7 Don’t really understand how we’ve got him for that fee or why others didn’t trump us to him. Happy he’s got a start so soon as I think he’ll be immovable, and given one training session he was top class.
• Styles - 6 High energy but our most vulnerable area. Kept going.
• Molumby - 7 got through the yards and the nasty stuff
• Mowatt - 7 ditto, some good link play too
• Wallace - 6 Fellows will be hard to replace and we do need to replace him but Jed will give you everything and demand it from others. Solid if no threat.
• Price - 6 Covered the ground and supported attacks.
• MJ - 7 just gets an extra mark for those flashes of quality where you feel something might happen
• Heggeboe - 7 Talk about leading from the front. Holds it so well, never gives in, got us up the pitch. Love that so far we’re trying to find a way to play Maja off him when the subs happen because it looks like a pairing that could really work.

All the subs were late but bought in to the plan and none of them weakened us.

All eyes on the transfer window now. Wine priority needs to be assists and goals. Excited to see what we do.

Kev Buckley:

Huge thanks to Deano Walton, who we think I'd last seen back on one of the Greve trips , for getting me a ticket for this one, and to my "Man in the Potteries" for not only putting me up whilst I was there, but for also attending the game, knowing full well that when he does, they usually lose. He also took me to a great oatcake shop.

All the talk before the game was, understandably, concern about the fact that we'd just sold the right side of our starting XI to rivals in the same division, and whether 10m for Fellows was a bit of a steal. News also filtered through that we were putting two goalies on the bench: none of us seemed to have a good answer for any of the questions.

From down in Row 2, and right behind our right side, the first thing I noticed was how big Campbell, playing as the right back, is, whilst ahead of him, Wallace, having long been a kind of "elder statesman understudy" to Fellows, came back in on the right of the three.

Albion seemed to get a grip of the game after about five minutes, although without really threatening too much, but that all changed around the quarter hour, with what I had originally thought were a couple of 'dodgy keeper" episodes, but, having now seen the first in some highlights, the Stoke keeper actually did well to drop the ball and so keep it in play rather than fall back over his goal-line after Johnston had got off an effort.

The second of course, from a corner shortly afterwards, was a bit of a flap, and that dropped at the feet of Phillips, who was able steer the ball through the crowd in front of him and open both the scoring, and his Albion account.

Stoke's shout for a penalty, after they'd opened up our left-hand side, looked from low down and behind the dive to block it, to be a reasonable one, although you could actually see the arm outstretched, breaking the fall, and so away from the chest.

Griffiths would also have to palm away another chance from down the left before we got to take what I thought was a deserved lead into the break.

I thought we went "off the boil" in the second half, although whether that was by design or not wasn't obvious, and Stoke certainly carved out enough chances to have drawn level, much to my mate's annoyance.

Wallace, in his first start since January, was clearly tiring but Mason chose to initially move him central in a 4-4-2, with Price moving over to the left and Johnston to the right, but that didn't last long, with new signing Collyer finally replacing Wallace with ten to go.

Thought the second half had the feel of inviting the opposition on and hoping that they didn't get the luck, or conjour up a screamer, which, in hitting the base of the post and sending one just wide, they didn't.

I suppose you could see Diakite for Johnston as attempting to close out the game, but then again, with the lateness of it, perhaps not: Maja's appearence, in the 95th minute, seemed a little pointless, given we don't want him to get injured.

Not sure that the ref saw Price run into a melee, after an Albion player was fouled, and push the protagonist over, because had he, then Price would surely have been shown a red: then again, the ref missed a fair bit over the game. Not sure Price out wide is a good as Price through the middle, either, although I write this, we've signed another Villa wide player, on loan.

All in all, a cracking away day atmosphere to be a part of, even if there was a bit of a collective "Phew: we've held on for a win" at the end, so thanks again Deano. Sadly, my man in the Potteries has said that he won't be jinxing his club by attending, should the opportunity arise in two year's time.

I'd brought my "Crancher Creations" Brazil shirt all the way from WA, on the off chance that I would get to see a game this time (my regular reader may recall the game I could have got to three years ago was moved, for TV, to the Monday I flew back on) so, if you get to see the highlights where the team come over to appauld the away fans, I am the one in the bright yellow shirt.

Back to WA at the end of the week and another season of watching the "as live" replays. To all those of you who follow the Albion, over land, and sea, and water: enjoy the live action!