:00:00. > :00:07.Poor facilities, too expensive, and then there's the parents. Just what
:00:08. > :00:23.can we do about the state of grass-roots football?
:00:24. > :00:30.Tonight, the ugly truth about our beautiful game, the huge threat to
:00:31. > :00:33.football at grass-roots level. Grass-roots football's in massive
:00:34. > :00:38.danger of folding in five to ten years. There's massive, massive, big
:00:39. > :00:41.problems out there. We've a special report on the threat to the game and
:00:42. > :00:45.what's being done to tackle the crisis. Also on the programme,
:00:46. > :00:50.comedy goals, but no laughing matter for Cobblers fans. Just six games
:00:51. > :00:57.and counting to save their Football League lives. And, we reflect on an
:00:58. > :01:00.historic day for Peterborough United. Could their cup final
:01:01. > :01:12.victory at Wembley prove the springboard for promotion?
:01:13. > :01:16.Hello, good evening. Yes, another packed programme tonight, and as
:01:17. > :01:27.always, Paul McVeigh will cast an analytical eye over our teams. And
:01:28. > :01:29.we welcome Shaun Turner, the Chief Executive of Norfolk's County FA,
:01:30. > :01:32.with plenty of insight into the grass-roots debate which is coming
:01:33. > :01:35.later in the programme. But we start tonight with a moment to savour for
:01:36. > :01:37.Peterborough United fans, celebrating their first cup final
:01:38. > :01:40.victory at Wembley, the Football League Trophy against Chesterfield.
:01:41. > :01:42.Jonathan Park was there as well, and he joined 25,000 happy fans on an
:01:43. > :01:53.historic day for Posh. In days like today, the formbook
:01:54. > :01:55.goes out the window, so the fact that we're inconsistent is
:01:56. > :01:58.completely irrelevant today. It's one day, it's a 90-minute season for
:01:59. > :02:01.us. We're going to batter Chesterfield all over the place.
:02:02. > :02:05.League Two? They might as well be Conference today. It's Mothers' Day
:02:06. > :02:08.today, isn't it? It is Mothers' Day. What a treat, what better place to
:02:09. > :02:12.be? And look at the weather. It's gorgeous. No matter what level you
:02:13. > :02:17.play at, your dream is as a young boy, you want to be at Wembley, in
:02:18. > :02:19.any capacity. The Johnstone's Paint Trophy might be unfashionable, but
:02:20. > :02:23.for 35,000 Peterborough and Chesterfield fans, it was well worth
:02:24. > :02:26.the journey. Posh, from League One, started the clear favourites against
:02:27. > :02:31.the Spireites, from the league below. Two former Wolves team-mates,
:02:32. > :02:38.hungry for success. Ferguson's team tore out of the blocks, and got the
:02:39. > :02:42.dream start every Posh fan wanted. And then the rebound turned in, and
:02:43. > :02:46.Posh take the lead. Into the box, chance to cross. It's towards that
:02:47. > :02:52.back post, oh, and it's over the bar. Horrible miss by Morsy. Posh
:02:53. > :02:54.prepare to take this corner from the right, in towards Brisley, with the
:02:55. > :02:56.header. 2-0, Posh! Brisley rises highest and heads Posh into a
:02:57. > :03:05.two-goal lead. Morsy might go all the way. It's on
:03:06. > :03:08.his left foot now. Gets the ball over, and Chesterfield pull one
:03:09. > :03:11.back. Morsy made it. Little flare-up there. Oh, Joe Newell's been sent
:03:12. > :03:16.off. It's a red card for Newell. Newell and Morsy clashed. He goes
:03:17. > :03:22.down. Penalty, surely. It is. Assombalonga scores. He has it in
:03:23. > :03:24.his hands, and he lifts the Football League Trophy. Peterborough United,
:03:25. > :03:30.2014 champions, their first national cup competition victory. They are
:03:31. > :03:37.loving it. No matter what happens now in our
:03:38. > :03:41.careers, no-one's going to take this away from us. It's done, set in
:03:42. > :03:43.stone, and you're right, there's far better players and managers than
:03:44. > :03:48.myself and my players who are never going to get the chance of coming
:03:49. > :03:51.here. It is the FA Cup for the two lower leagues, and we took it as
:03:52. > :03:55.serious as anything else. How was it for you? Brilliant. As long as we
:03:56. > :03:57.can kick on now and go into the play-off, come back here in a
:03:58. > :04:01.fortnight, or three weeks, whatever it is, brilliant. One great thing,
:04:02. > :04:04.we've never lost at Wembley. Back here again at the end of May? Yeah,
:04:05. > :04:08.hopefully, that'd be the big one. I think we come back here in the
:04:09. > :04:11.play-offs, we go 25,000 here, for sure, so that's very exciting. It's
:04:12. > :04:14.there. I'd love for most of them to come on Wednesday night. It's only
:04:15. > :04:18.for a fiver if you have a ticket from here, come. But we'll fight
:04:19. > :04:21.that battle. The more success and the more trophies, the more days
:04:22. > :04:32.like this we can do, the fans will come.
:04:33. > :04:44.You can't get enough of it, can you? Jonathan Park there reporting. Let's
:04:45. > :04:47.hope that proves the catalyst for promotion at London Road. Plenty
:04:48. > :04:51.more action still to come, but next, our special report into the state of
:04:52. > :04:55.the grass-roots game here in the UK. The number of people playing is
:04:56. > :04:58.dropping at an alarming rate. So much so that Sport England has just
:04:59. > :05:03.announced it's cutting the level of funding it provides. We'll discuss
:05:04. > :05:06.the picture here in the East shortly with Paul and with Shaun. But first,
:05:07. > :05:24.Kevin Kilbane on the crisis facing grass-roots football.
:05:25. > :05:29.Unbelievably, football is no longer the top participant sport in this
:05:30. > :05:35.country. More people nowadays prefer to run, swim or cycle.
:05:36. > :05:41.Player numbers are in decline, and in many places, facilities are
:05:42. > :05:44.shocking. Junior football still has the ongoing issue of overaggressive
:05:45. > :05:49.parents, and many still question the way we coach our kids. Make no
:05:50. > :05:55.mistake, the grass-roots game is in big trouble. Enjoy that game, boys?
:05:56. > :05:59.Yeah. Good. Played very well. Kenny Saunders is the manager of Woolton
:06:00. > :06:03.FC, which has 62 junior teams. He's launched a campaign to save
:06:04. > :06:06.grass-roots football. Grass-roots football's in massive danger of
:06:07. > :06:11.folding within the next five or ten years. There's massive, massive, big
:06:12. > :06:13.problems out there. Right from funding to grass-roots coaching to
:06:14. > :06:19.the parents, respect campaigns, there's many, many issues out there
:06:20. > :06:22.at the moment. Although Woolton have addressed the issue of pushy parents
:06:23. > :06:31.on the touchline, not everybody else has. That's a yellow card, ref! Card
:06:32. > :06:33.him! He's an animal, give him a yellow card! You're an animal! He
:06:34. > :06:42.deserves a card! We're only human beings, same as
:06:43. > :06:45.anybody else. It's very hard for young referees coming through today,
:06:46. > :06:53.the abuse they get off the line, it's not worth carrying on. We get a
:06:54. > :06:57.few of them who are hot-headed on the pitch, same as the parents on
:06:58. > :07:02.the line. Ellis Cashmore is a professor of culture, media and
:07:03. > :07:04.sport. There's almost a shame inflicted on young people, you see
:07:05. > :07:08.their parents berating them, chastising them, you shouldn't have
:07:09. > :07:11.done this, or, here are the reasons why you lost. A postmortem on every
:07:12. > :07:22.game. Pete Ackerley is the FA's top man in
:07:23. > :07:25.charge of development. Constantly shouting instruction is
:07:26. > :07:29.counterproductive. We do want that noise and support, we want that to
:07:30. > :07:31.be there. A parent wouldn't shout at their child during a piano lesson,
:07:32. > :07:35.black key, white key, black key, white key. So what we're trying to
:07:36. > :07:40.work out is a right level of support for those young people. Noisy
:07:41. > :07:47.parents are simply adding to the pressures we already heap on
:07:48. > :07:49.youngsters. Children should be allowed to develop their skills in a
:07:50. > :07:52.competition-free environment, where they can experiment, where they can
:07:53. > :07:56.be creative, where they can express themselves. All the time enjoying
:07:57. > :08:00.themselves while they acquire new skills. Then we'll produce better
:08:01. > :08:08.rounded players, freed of the unnecessary pressures of
:08:09. > :08:11.competition. Another key issue is the way we coach our kids. When I
:08:12. > :08:14.was a lad, we had the crazy situation where we were asked to
:08:15. > :08:19.play on full-sized pitches. No wonder we have a long-ball culture.
:08:20. > :08:24.And there's always been an issue about the standard of coaching. But
:08:25. > :08:27.the FA insist that's all changing. What we're doing now is providing
:08:28. > :08:31.the right level of coaching for the right coach in the right environment
:08:32. > :08:33.to make sure the coaching they receive is the right thing for that
:08:34. > :08:35.young player's development. Coaching badges, it's extreme, the money
:08:36. > :08:42.they're charging grass-roots volunteers. They're being priced
:08:43. > :08:46.out. We need to have better coaches, we need more coaches, more qualified
:08:47. > :08:50.coaches. It's a ten-year journey, and I believe we're well on the way
:08:51. > :08:53.to delivering a world-class coaching system, and I feel within ten years
:08:54. > :08:57.we'll be seeing the fruits of that labour. While the culture of the
:08:58. > :09:00.grass-roots game may be changing, there is still one huge cloud on the
:09:01. > :09:02.horizon. Funding. With council cutbacks and even Sport England
:09:03. > :09:09.cutting its financial support, amateur clubs need to know who's
:09:10. > :09:12.going to help them survive. We've got to get the Premier League, the
:09:13. > :09:14.Football League, we've got to get governments, we've got to get
:09:15. > :09:16.councils, everyone who's responsible for grass-roots football and can
:09:17. > :09:21.improve grass-roots football, we need them round the table, and we
:09:22. > :09:24.need them now. So, what's the picture in this
:09:25. > :09:29.region? In Norfolk, the number of teams has fallen by 5% compared with
:09:30. > :09:33.the last season. In Suffolk, it's fallen by 10% in three seasons. In
:09:34. > :09:35.Cambridgeshire, men's football is also slightly declining, but the
:09:36. > :09:40.number of female teams has increased, and disabled
:09:41. > :09:43.participation is on the rise. Paul McVeigh is joined in the studio
:09:44. > :09:47.tonight by Shaun Turner from the Norfolk County FA. Shaun, your
:09:48. > :09:50.numbers are down. What is the reality, though, with grass-roots
:09:51. > :09:53.football? Is it really as bad as everyone says it is? I think there
:09:54. > :09:56.are dangers in the 11-a-side traditional adult game, we are
:09:57. > :09:59.seeing a decline this season, but actually, youth football across the
:10:00. > :10:04.country, and especially in Norfolk, is actually growing. So, there are
:10:05. > :10:07.some issues that need to be addressed. But actually, it's the
:10:08. > :10:12.11-a-side game where we're now struggling. That's what I was going
:10:13. > :10:15.to ask. What is the problem? You're saying the youngsters are
:10:16. > :10:26.flourishing, but why are the adults struggling to keep on playing? It is
:10:27. > :10:30.a different culture now, a different lifestyle, people have to work a lot
:10:31. > :10:37.longer, so spare time is not necessarily available, like when
:10:38. > :10:42.shots were not open on Sundays, football is on six or seven nights a
:10:43. > :10:47.week, so there are numerous things that are affecting it in terms of
:10:48. > :10:51.the traditional game, which we are concerned about. A lot of people are
:10:52. > :10:57.talking about the quality of facilities, are they that bad? Are
:10:58. > :11:03.we edit soft? We have been spoiled rotten, ten or 20 years ago, people
:11:04. > :11:11.played on pitches in all weathers. Yes, but you could also leave your
:11:12. > :11:17.back door unlocked! We are in a different world now. Councils are
:11:18. > :11:22.very wary of injuries and lawsuits and so on, it is a different
:11:23. > :11:27.culture. These new pictures will play it a difficult part in the
:11:28. > :11:33.future, but they will not be the all and end all. We are trying to work
:11:34. > :11:38.with our local authorities to see if we can get some improved standards
:11:39. > :11:44.of pitches. We are trying to work with parish councils, and with
:11:45. > :11:47.private providers, to increase the standards, but it will not be a
:11:48. > :11:53.short-term fix in terms of facilities, due to the numbers.
:11:54. > :11:58.Women's football, nobody is talking about it, but their numbers are
:11:59. > :12:03.shooting up. Whenever you see the professional women's football, and
:12:04. > :12:14.all of the other age groups, and at and about, you see girls playing
:12:15. > :12:18.football. It is a really big boost. If the women's is going well, it is
:12:19. > :12:23.always going to be give and take. There is millions going in, if we
:12:24. > :12:28.talk about the football foundation, in this region alone, 1500 projects
:12:29. > :12:38.across the East over the past decade, billions of pounds. It is a
:12:39. > :12:41.huge amount when you spread it across one region, and crowds of
:12:42. > :12:46.over ?50 million. That is the positive element of the story that
:12:47. > :12:53.people do not say. Definitely. There are a lot of positives, this shows
:12:54. > :12:57.the vast numbers of facilities we have to deal with, and it is a
:12:58. > :13:02.numbers game. It is not as bleak as people make out, but there is a lot
:13:03. > :13:08.more that can be done. We need better facilities in 2014. Our fans
:13:09. > :13:11.Forum had some interesting points to make about this, here is their take
:13:12. > :13:19.on what should be done to support the local game.
:13:20. > :13:32.It seems to be dying, you hear of Leeds collapsing, people playing on
:13:33. > :13:37.these nice pitches, if that dies, where will the new players come
:13:38. > :13:44.from? I have played football abroad, in France, Belgium Holland,
:13:45. > :13:51.and the facilities there are so much better than they are here. You go to
:13:52. > :13:53.a nice ground, a clubhouse, you turn up expecting to lose heavily, and
:13:54. > :13:58.you give them a good game, because they are at your level, but their
:13:59. > :14:07.authorities pay for those facilities, and there is coaching as
:14:08. > :14:13.well. It shows in product. Those countries have advanced
:14:14. > :14:18.significantly. One of the things we need to consider, because there are
:14:19. > :14:23.so many distractions for kids, so many other things they could be
:14:24. > :14:27.doing, they do not want to commit, maybe we need to start getting some
:14:28. > :14:31.of these coaches into schools and picking kids up from there. It seems
:14:32. > :14:37.that that is the only place where kids have a dedicated time to play
:14:38. > :14:40.football, but often they are taught by a PE teacher, who may have never
:14:41. > :14:46.played football themselves, that alone coached. I must confess, I
:14:47. > :14:49.thought this was going to all take pace with the advent of St George's
:14:50. > :14:53.Park and all things good we've heard about it. Certainly, the amount of
:14:54. > :14:56.money that's gone into St George's Park, I thought it was going to be
:14:57. > :14:59.cascaded out so that regionally, locally, areas were going to be
:15:00. > :15:02.improved by that, by the advent of coaching. Or, certainly, coaches for
:15:03. > :15:08.the coaches and things like that. But, as yet, we've yet to see
:15:09. > :15:13.anything of that. Well, Shaun, is it as bad as
:15:14. > :15:15.everyone says it is? The lads there, they are worried that, frankly, our
:15:16. > :15:20.facilities aren't anywhere near as good as the ones in Europe. I think
:15:21. > :15:24.some of them aren't. I think that is a matter of fact. Again, we are
:15:25. > :15:28.doing an incredible amount of work to try to improve the facilities at
:15:29. > :15:31.a time when money is tight. So, we have the football foundation, but we
:15:32. > :15:34.need partnership funding. And when there is cuts to public sector
:15:35. > :15:37.funding and local authorities and private sector, it's very difficult
:15:38. > :15:44.to get them one over the finish line. Is that the problem? It's not
:15:45. > :15:48.statutory. It's almost like they can put it in through a discretionary
:15:49. > :15:50.fund. The councils can actually put the money out. And that is not
:15:51. > :15:53.happening. So, the whole infrastructure of football and the
:15:54. > :15:57.grassroots, does that need to be modernised? Yeah, I think we always
:15:58. > :16:01.struggle because we work with the volunteer sector. And when you work
:16:02. > :16:05.with volunteers, you have to be respectful and careful at the same
:16:06. > :16:08.time. But we need to modernise. We need to come into 2014 and embrace
:16:09. > :16:11.technology, which the Football Association are trying to do. But
:16:12. > :16:16.that, coupled with the recession we've gone through, there are so
:16:17. > :16:19.many plates to try to spin. So, if there is one specific problem which
:16:20. > :16:22.you want to try to tackle now, what is it? In terms of the 11-a-side
:16:23. > :16:27.game, it is getting better facilities for people. So, the role
:16:28. > :16:31.of parents we hear as well, the role of parents in youth football, is
:16:32. > :16:34.that a problem, too? It's a problem in youth football because they are
:16:35. > :16:37.living the dream through their children. And the FA Youth Review
:16:38. > :16:40.which has taken place to try and make games at lower age groups
:16:41. > :16:43.development will hopefully help that and that'll allow the kids to play
:16:44. > :16:47.and be competitive and win games. But then move on to the following
:16:48. > :16:50.week and not worry about league tables at such a young age, at
:16:51. > :16:54.seven, eight, or nine. Have you ever had to ban any parents from coming
:16:55. > :16:57.to games in Norfolk? We have had to... We have had to raise relevant
:16:58. > :16:59.charges to certain unruly, excitable parents, shall we say. Very
:17:00. > :17:05.diplomatic. Because that does happen. Because football is such a
:17:06. > :17:09.passionate game. We know that. It is not, like Pete said, about playing
:17:10. > :17:12.the piano. It's slightly different. For those who are worried about the
:17:13. > :17:15.future, we've heard in the report that grassroots football will be
:17:16. > :17:18.dead in a few years. Is that really going to be the case? No! No,
:17:19. > :17:22.definitely not. There's always going to be the diehards that want to play
:17:23. > :17:25.the game, from youth to adult. It might look a different game in ten
:17:26. > :17:34.years time. You know, 11-a-side football might not be the main game
:17:35. > :17:36.in the adult sector. It might be five-a-side, it might be
:17:37. > :17:39.recreational football. But it won't die. Not a chance. Shaun, thanks
:17:40. > :17:43.very much. Keep up the good work in Norfolk, too. What do you think,
:17:44. > :17:46.then, of what you've heard this evening? Does it strike a chord with
:17:47. > :17:49.your own club and experience? Are things that bad? If so, what do you
:17:50. > :17:53.think the solution is? Get in touch, let us know via Twitter, or our
:17:54. > :17:56.Facebook page. We will take on board all your comments and your stories
:17:57. > :17:59.and share them next week. OK, lots more to come in the programme this
:18:00. > :18:02.evening with deepening relegation problems, but it is not all doom and
:18:03. > :18:05.gloom. Far from it. Ipswich Town's fighting spirit reaps rewards to
:18:06. > :18:11.maintain their Premier League promotion push. It is an equaliser
:18:12. > :18:17.for Ipswich Town! It is no more than they deserve.
:18:18. > :18:20.Well, having kicked off with the grassroots, we thought we'd work our
:18:21. > :18:23.way up the divisions this week, starting with League Two. And you
:18:24. > :18:26.will recall our special feature on Northampton town's fight to stay in
:18:27. > :18:29.the Football League a couple of weeks ago. Well, Saturday's 3-0
:18:30. > :18:34.defeat to Bury means things are looking increasingly desperate for
:18:35. > :18:39.the Cobblers. Paul, six games left. Is it as much of a mental thing now
:18:40. > :18:42.than a practical one for the side? I think it could be, especially
:18:43. > :18:45.because the Cobblers were only four points off Bury before this game.
:18:46. > :18:52.And, obviously, losing 3-0, now seven points behind them. So, that
:18:53. > :18:56.is the problem. He was so close, and getting themselves back into the
:18:57. > :18:59.game. This is the kind of luck you get when you're down in the bottom
:19:00. > :19:03.of the league. A deflection. And in over the top of the goalkeeper. And
:19:04. > :19:08.if you think that's bad, we will see something later on. But this is the
:19:09. > :19:12.kind of thing where, you get a deflection, and here, the keeper, he
:19:13. > :19:16.saved that. I used to play with him at Burnley. This is the one that
:19:17. > :19:22.sums it up. That is a terrible backpass. But you can't... There is
:19:23. > :19:27.no excuse. I am almost hiding behind the sofa whenever I see that. What
:19:28. > :19:30.on earth was going through the player's mind? Well, first of all,
:19:31. > :19:34.it's a bad backpass. He was trying to clear it, it's one of those ones
:19:35. > :19:37.where you just think, you just want the ground to open up and swallow
:19:38. > :19:40.you. So, one bad game. How serious an impact do you think that will
:19:41. > :19:44.have? Well, I think because... They are only a couple of points off the
:19:45. > :19:47.bottom, they still have a chance of getting out. They are only three
:19:48. > :19:53.points of getting off Wigan and Portsmouth. And, of course, they
:19:54. > :19:57.have got them in the next few weeks coming up. But it is tough. It is
:19:58. > :20:01.really, really tough to try and get themselves out of the bottom two. At
:20:02. > :20:04.the top end of the table, it's been a good week for Southend.
:20:05. > :20:08.Back-to-back victories and right back in the play-off mix. Paul, what
:20:09. > :20:10.do you think has changed for Phil Brown's side? Let's be honest,
:20:11. > :20:15.February and March were pretty miserable months. Well, I think
:20:16. > :20:18.they've had such a long run without scoring a goal... Sorry, without
:20:19. > :20:21.winning a game can and because they did sign Jamar Loza on loan, and
:20:22. > :20:24.they've also signed Jacob Murphy on loan from Norwich. So that is a
:20:25. > :20:28.terrific two signs from two exciting young players. When you see this,
:20:29. > :20:36.another header, off the crossbar, you think, is it too much? They had
:20:37. > :20:38.one won last Monday. Are they going to get another, with back-to-back
:20:39. > :20:42.wins? Well, you see Jacob Murphy, signed on loan. Lovely ball across,
:20:43. > :20:46.a little bit of luck, and can you believe that is his first goal since
:20:47. > :20:53.last October? So, whenever you get that, 13 games without winning, and
:20:54. > :20:56.then winning two games in a row. Phil Brown has done so well to keep
:20:57. > :21:00.his team going. And keeping the momentum going. And he's been using
:21:01. > :21:03.loaning like a lot of the managers have, extremely cannily. That is one
:21:04. > :21:08.way that is going to propel them. The next few weeks, critical for
:21:09. > :21:10.him. He's got to try to keep that squad fresh and with as much impetus
:21:11. > :21:16.as possible. Well, I think the momentum now,
:21:17. > :21:19.because they weren't in the play-offs for so long, and they've
:21:20. > :21:22.had two wins, they've got themselves back in, I don't think they're going
:21:23. > :21:25.to catch Burton who are six points above them. But with York city's old
:21:26. > :21:29.manager Nigel Worthington sitting there, he has had a very good run up
:21:30. > :21:32.there with Oxford as well, so there are three teams on 59, the last six
:21:33. > :21:35.games is absolutely crucial. Let's hear from the gaffer, Phil Brown.
:21:36. > :21:39.He's got a clear message to his players and the Us' fans. Quite a
:21:40. > :21:42.way to go. We've got six games, probably another four or five weeks
:21:43. > :21:46.to play. We've got to make sure that that four or five weeks turns into
:21:47. > :21:50.seven or eight weeks. And come 26th May, we are at the right place at
:21:51. > :21:53.the right time. To League One where, again, it is edge of your seats
:21:54. > :21:57.time. It is set to stay that way right until the end of the season.
:21:58. > :21:59.Let's go to the Lamax. Stevenage manager Graham Westley
:22:00. > :22:02.remains upbeat despite seeing his team slip to the bottom of League
:22:03. > :22:07.Two after being held to a draw against Port Vale who took the lead
:22:08. > :22:12.through Tom Pope. Boro hit back through substitute Peter Hartley on
:22:13. > :22:15.the end of Luke Freeman's free kick. 1-1, five without a win now, but
:22:16. > :22:19.Westley says battling point could be priceless come the end of the
:22:20. > :22:23.season. Stevenage dropping to the foot of the table in part because of
:22:24. > :22:27.Colchester's defeat at Notts County. The Us falling behind after just
:22:28. > :22:30.five minutes. Roland Murray, the scorer. Always fine margins when
:22:31. > :22:33.you're struggling, of course, and Colchester could do with the
:22:34. > :22:36.footballing gods to start smiling on them sometime soon. Certainly on
:22:37. > :22:39.this evidence. Strength, determination, and no little skill
:22:40. > :22:44.from Dominic Rose setting up Freddie Sears, hitting the post. To make
:22:45. > :22:49.matters worse, County grabbed a second in first half injury time.
:22:50. > :22:54.All very close at the foot of League One. Colchester need that change in
:22:55. > :22:57.fortune and they need it soon. Well, this is how the bottom of
:22:58. > :23:00.League One looks. Grim reading for fans of Stevenage and Colchester.
:23:01. > :23:04.Paul, it doesn't matter what Colchester try and do, they are not
:23:05. > :23:07.getting any luck at the moment, are they?
:23:08. > :23:12.No, they're not. They have no wins in three. They can see themselves
:23:13. > :23:15.slowly falling down to that bottom four. Then, of course, when you see
:23:16. > :23:18.Notts County, getting themselves back out of it, who were rock bottom
:23:19. > :23:22.a few weeks ago. And now Stevenage have taken their place. The only
:23:23. > :23:26.thing for Stevenage, they do have that game in hand. So if they win
:23:27. > :23:30.that game in hand, it does take them back up over that 40 point mark. So,
:23:31. > :23:33.it is, of course, it is going to be very difficult for them. And key
:23:34. > :23:35.games, of course, Boro hosting leaders Wolves. Colchester, they
:23:36. > :23:39.travel to Peterborough. And those matches aside, I wonder if there is
:23:40. > :23:43.anything in agreement that these two sides have? They are both at the
:23:44. > :23:47.bottom, are they playing in a certain style which means they are
:23:48. > :23:50.there, or is that luck of results? I think that it's got to come down to
:23:51. > :23:53.the strikeforce and scoring the goals. When you see the action and
:23:54. > :23:57.the footage, there is occasionally, it'll hit the bar, hit the post, a
:23:58. > :24:00.bit unlucky. But whenever you see Peterborough and Colchester, that
:24:01. > :24:05.is... That is such a massive game after winning the JPT on Sunday. And
:24:06. > :24:09.then, of course, Colchester United going down the other end. For me, I
:24:10. > :24:13.can see Peterborough are going to be in a good run of form. They've got
:24:14. > :24:17.to get back on the horse, Posh. Massive game for them. How easy is
:24:18. > :24:21.it to focus on the league after winning at Wembley? Interestingly,
:24:22. > :24:23.when I was at Luton Town, and we won the JPT, we got relegated in the
:24:24. > :24:27.same season. Obviously, that's not going to happen to Peterborough.
:24:28. > :24:30.What I'm saying is it can suddenly take your eye off the ball and when
:24:31. > :24:33.you've been concentrating on that cup run and then suddenly now they
:24:34. > :24:37.need to get back into the league. But the league is crucial, and they
:24:38. > :24:41.need to get themselves back on. And, as we can see at the top of the
:24:42. > :24:44.table, victory for Posh and that game in hand could be crucial. And
:24:45. > :24:46.it could ready affect MK Dons' chances as well of extending their
:24:47. > :24:50.season. They are desperate, of course, to make the latter stages.
:24:51. > :24:52.They had a huge crowd at Stadium MK. 20,000.
:24:53. > :24:57.This is the kind of scene which Pete Winkleman has been craving for. But
:24:58. > :25:00.the gulf in class, I'm afraid, told the difference. Well, it's probably
:25:01. > :25:04.because Wolves took over 9,000 away fans. Because they are doing so well
:25:05. > :25:07.up at the top of the league, it just shows you that if MK Dons do ever
:25:08. > :25:11.make it to the Championship, just what that stadium could look like.
:25:12. > :25:15.This is what it's all about. Odelusi goes in for that challenge. He gets
:25:16. > :25:18.the ball. So I am very surprised the referee gave a second yellow,
:25:19. > :25:24.obviously, red card. And that was the turning point. You know, Wolves
:25:25. > :25:29.have gone and put the ball to their backs. Massive melee. Literally,
:25:30. > :25:32.everyone is throwing their body in front of it, trying to stop that
:25:33. > :25:38.ball coming in. Eventually, the ball comes into the box for Macdonald.
:25:39. > :25:43.And young McAlinden with this... Well, it is just a heart breaker for
:25:44. > :25:47.MK Dons. Whenever McAlinden... I know he is and Northern Irish lad,
:25:48. > :25:50.but I can't say I am happy for him to score that goal. He's always
:25:51. > :25:53.happy. Let's take us on to the Championship now. A couple of weeks
:25:54. > :25:56.ago, you'll remember we were saying Ipswich have conceded more points
:25:57. > :25:59.after leading games than any other team in the country. Some 28 in all.
:26:00. > :26:02.Tonight, we can reveal Ipswich are also top when it comes to rescuing
:26:03. > :26:05.points from losing positions. A total of 18 gained thanks to Town's
:26:06. > :26:09.battling spirit, the latest coming at Portman Road against Nottingham
:26:10. > :26:13.Forest. Danny Fox has the first corner kick
:26:14. > :26:19.of the game for Nottingham Forest. Swings towards the far post and into
:26:20. > :26:23.the net. It is 1-0. Another shocker of a start for Ipswich Town. It is
:26:24. > :26:28.Danny Collins, the former loan player here, who heads it into the
:26:29. > :26:33.net inside four minutes. Creswell, left footed. There might
:26:34. > :26:41.be a chance for Murphy, it was point-blank, it was a good stop.
:26:42. > :26:48.Corner kick taken short. And it is headed in! It is an equaliser for
:26:49. > :26:53.Ipswich Town. And it is no more than they deserve. It is Daryl Murphy
:26:54. > :26:54.with his 11th of the season. It is Ipswich Town one, Nottingham Forest
:26:55. > :27:00.one. Well, Shaun, you take a keen
:27:01. > :27:03.interest at Portman Road. What do you think of the last few months of
:27:04. > :27:07.the campaign? I think they've got a fantastic chance of making the
:27:08. > :27:12.play-offs. You know, young Murphy is on fire at the moment. It is a great
:27:13. > :27:15.opportunity. And with the stats about their resilience, it's superb.
:27:16. > :27:19.Well, they are only two points off the play-off place. And getting that
:27:20. > :27:24.draw against Forest at the weekend, it is a good point. And it's fine.
:27:25. > :27:27.And it's also the fact they've had a good run of form. They've had two
:27:28. > :27:31.wins and a draw in the last three games. And that is the kind of run
:27:32. > :27:32.of form you need to get that momentum, taking themselves out of
:27:33. > :27:34.the play-offs back into the top six. games. And that is the kind of run
:27:35. > :27:37.of form you need to Could you put your finger on what McCarthy has
:27:38. > :27:40.done? One thing out of all the others. Well, I think it's just the
:27:41. > :27:44.solidity he gives and the confidence he brings. He has been there and
:27:45. > :27:47.done it. The only thing is I would love to say Ipswich should get
:27:48. > :27:52.promoted, but, you know. Come on, man, get it out of yourself. Good
:27:53. > :27:55.luck to them. I suppose, looking from that perspective, Shaun, just a
:27:56. > :27:58.quick one from you, can they make the play- off? Yes, most definitely.
:27:59. > :28:02.I think they've hit a good run of form. Why not? And then it is a
:28:03. > :28:04.lottery. So, why not? Shaun, thanks very much for your company. We
:28:05. > :28:07.enjoyed reading your reactions, actually, to the Mick McCarthy
:28:08. > :28:10.interview. And the focus on Ipswich last week. Please keep those
:28:11. > :28:13.thoughts coming in via Twitter or Facebook. Particularly your stories
:28:14. > :28:19.concerning the grassroots game where you live. We will share some of them
:28:20. > :28:22.next week's programme. But that is it for another week. My thanks to
:28:23. > :28:26.Shaun Turner from Norfolk County FA, and Paul McVeigh alongside me. Thank
:28:27. > :28:31.you very much for watching, we will see you all again next week. That is
:28:32. > :28:36.all from us for now on Late Kick Off. Goodbye for now.