Luton Town FC vs Mansfield Town (19th Sep 2015)

PUBLISHED 18:07 19th September 2015** Mackail-Smith penalty has Hatters win at home at last**

LUTON TOWN 1-0 MANSFIELD TOWN

Craig Mackail-Smith’s second half penalty was enough for the Hatters to clinch a vital three points and a first home win of the season against Mansfield.

The striker was felled by Ryan Tafazolli just before the hour mark, but picked himself up to smash the spot-kick straight down the middle of Brian Jensen’s goal for a 1-0 victory in front of almost 8,000 fans.

Mackail-Smith had already been denied an outstanding overhead kick by the assistant’s flag in the first half, but was not to go without his third goal of the season to give Luton a deserved victory.

It was by no means a clear-cut victory, with Mansfield pressing in the last 10 minutes, but despite a nervy finale the Town were able to hang on for a vital three points at Kenilworth Road.

The Hatters made three changes following last week’s defeat to Notts County, with Stephen McNulty, Paddy McCourt and Cameron McGeehan all coming in. And it was McCourt who had the opening opportunity but his free-kick from the inside right was comfortably dealt with by the Mansfield keeper.

McGeehan was also in and amongst the early Luton attacks, breaking through the Mansfield midfield to earn a free-kick 30 yards out, which again came to nothing as the Town dominated the early proceedings.

The Stags got a foothold in the game soon after, but it was the Hatters who continued to form the half-chances, before Smith had his low shot, the best chance of the first 45 minutes, saved low down by Jensen from ten yards out.

The visitors then lodged their first real meaningful attack just after the 10-minute mark as Nathan Thomas found a fraction of room to get a shot away on the edge of the area that was well blocked by Griffiths.

Despite early domination, the Town were unable to fashion many clear-cut chances, with McQuoid the latest to jig his way through to the area, but again the hosts were left disappointed as their claims for a trip on Mackail-Smith were not met by the referee.

Mansfield became increasingly threatening on the break, and were able to fashion a chance of their own as Matt Green had a snap-shot dealt with excellently by Mark Tyler after McNulty – who replaced the suspended Scott Cuthbert in the back four – lost his footing in the area.

The home faithful became increasing frustrated with numerous decisions not going their way, with the officials missing an apparent elbow from Green on Luke Wilkinson, with the Town centre-half requiring treatment following the off-the-ball incident.

Chances dried up as the half developed, with numerous refereeing decisions going against the Hatters, who frequently gave the ball away in the last ten minutes of a bustling 45 minutes, the half eventually ending goalless in the Kenilworth Road sunshine.

The Town continued their dominance in the second half, and Mackail-Smith was once again left appealing in vain for a foul against Krystian Pearce 25 yards from goal.

But an early chance fell to the Stags on 50 minutes through Craig Westcarr who, after being put through from a counter-attack from the hosts, had his shot superbly saved from Tyler, who then dealt equally well with the spinning ball before it disappeared into the back of the net.

The Hatters were eventually rewarded for their endeavour though. Mackail-Smith latched onto a fine thoughball from McCourt but was hauled down in the area by Tafazolli. The striker dusted himself down to fire in the opener shortly before the hour mark. The offending Tafazolli was perhaps fortunate to remain on the pitch given he was the last man in the visiting defence.

A goal to the good, the Town were unable to press for a second, limited to an Olly Lee half-chance that the 24-year-old fired over from 10 yards, with the desire for that elusive victory at home becoming ever greater having previously lost two and drawn one of their games at Kenilworth Road this season.

While Mansfield were pressing, they were far from peppering the Town goal, limited to long-range efforts, mainly from substitute Jack Thomas who twice tested Tyler from difference in tend second-half minutes but to no avail.

The Town opted for some fresh legs with McGeehan, who just minutes before had nodded over from a Stephen O’Donnell cross, replaced by Mark O’Brien, alongside Danny Green, himself a late substitute for the Town.

Having suffered late goals in four of the previous seven league matches this campaign, nerves were understandably fraught in the home back four, but a commanding display from McNulty, marshalled by man-of-the-match Tyler, kept Mansfield at bay as the Town secured a first clean sheet of the season also.

Groans rang all around as four added minutes were announced, but the visitors could only muster a half-chance through Ari Yussuf’s header as Mackail-Smith defied his 93-plus minutes of running to execute some superb hold-up play in the dying moments to secure three points in Bedfordshire for the first time of the season.

The Town return to Kenilworth Road for their next league game, with AFC Wimbledon the visitors at 3pm next Saturday.

TOWN: Tyler; O’Donnell, Wilkinson, McNulty, Griffiths; McQuoid (sub Green 81), Smith, McGeehan (sub O’Brien 86), Lee, McCourt (sub Lawless 94), Mackail-Smith. Subs not used: Justham, Williams, O’Brien, Hall.

Attendance: 7,939, with 262 following Mansfield.

http://www.lutontown.co.uk/news/article/luton-1-0-mansfield-gallery-2698789.aspx

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0o3F5jdebY

League Two: Luton Town 1 Mansfield Town 0

Luton Town are finally are off to winning ways at Kenilworth Road in League Two after Craig Mackail-Smith’s penalty was enough to beat Mansfield Town this afternoon.

The Hatters striker won the spot-kick himself just before the hour mark, latching on to Paddy McCourt’s magnificent through ball and being clearly pulled back by Ryan Tafazolli as he shaped to shoot.

How the Stags man was only shown yellow by official Kevin Johnson remains bewildering though, with Tafazolli easily the last man, and just one in a number of baffling decisions made throughout by the poor set of officials.

Mansfield were ultimately punished though, with Mackail-Smith dusting himself down to hammer past Brian Jensen from 12 yards for his third goal of the season as Town survived another late onslaught to secure a hugely welcome three points.

Hatters had made three changes for the clash, with Steve McNulty replacing the suspended Scott Cuthbert, Cameron McGeehan in for Luke Guttridge, while Paddy McCourt was given the nod over Danny Green.

The hosts started off playing some decent football and a neat Cameron McGeehan ball saw Stephen O’Donnell flying down the right flank, whose cross was deflected into the path of Jonathan Smith,the midfielder’s low shot drawing a fine save from Brian Jensen.

However, Hatters were then indebted to a fine save from Mark Tyler, a theme that was to become recurrent, as when McNulty slipped, he was off his line in a flash to deny Matt Green.

The half hour mark of a quiet opening then saw a flash point of sorts as Luke Wilkinson fell to the floor in an off the ball incident with Green, and furiously intimated to the officials he had been elbowed.

However, both referee or linesman were clearly not of the same opinion, as the Stags forward went unpunished, with the hush quickly returning to Kenilworth Road.

Luton were then left fuming at the linesman for denying them a world class opener as McQuoid’s cross was met by a simply stunning overhead volley from Mackail-Smith that flew past Jensen, only to see a raised flag cruelly cut short his celebrations.

After the break, Luton were thankful to Tyler once more for keeping the scores level as an incisive Stags break saw Craig Westcarr racing away. The Luton stopper got just enough to block the shot, before managing to grab the rebound as it threatened to trickle over the line.

With McCourt in the role of quarter back, and Mackail-Smith on the same wavelength, the pair combined perfectly to break the deadlock on 58 minutes, although after Town’s supporters celebrations had died down, they remained irked it wasn’t 11 versus 10.

Stags weren’t a beaten side though as Tyler collected Westcarr’s low attempt, although Wilkinson could have given his side some vital breathing space, lashing over from inside the area.

The Stags were a danger from distance as well, Jack Thomas’ volley flying inches wide with Tyler appearing to get a crucial touch as the ball looked to fly into the far corner

Luton, as they have previously done in home games, started to retreat further and further into their own half, giving the home support kittens, although they could have the game safe as O’Donnell finally delivered a decent cross and McGeehan stooped to head over.

The final 10 minutes saw Mansfield throw everything at their hosts, with Tyler called upon to brave block from Adi Yussuf as Luton’s defence parted far too easily.

A marvellous intervention from O’Donnell also kept the visitors at bay, as they subjected Town to an aerial bombardment. Led by skipper McNulty though, it eventually came to nothing as Luton could celebrate a first clean sheet of the campaign, and more importantly, a first home victory.

Hatters: Mark Tyler, Stephen O’Donnell, Scott Griffiths, Steve McNulty(C), Luke Wilkinson, Olly Lee, Jonathan Smith, Paddy McCourt (Alex Lawless 90), Josh McQuoid (Danny Green 80), Cameron McGeehan (Mark O’Brien 86), Craig Mackail-Smith.

Subs not used: Elliot Justham, Ryan Hall, Curtley Williams, Jack Marriot.

Magpies: Brian Jensen, Malvind Benning, Mitch Rose (Adi Yussuf 77), Krystian Pearce, Adam Chapman, Chris Clements (Jack Thomas 44), Matt Green, Craig Westcarr, Nathan Thomas (Reggie Lambe 53), Ryan Tafazolli, Nicky Hunt (C).

Subs not used: Liam Marsden, Lee Collins, Matty Blair, Jamie McGuire.

Referee: Kevin Johnson.

Booked: Hunt 25, Smith 33, J Thomas 46, Tafazolli 58.

Attendance: 7,939 (262 Stags)

Hatters MOM: Mark Tyler - rewarded for some crucial saves with a first clean sheet of the season.

Hatters assistant boss Terry Harris admitted it was a huge relief to earn a first League Two win of the season at Kenilworth Road yesterday afternoon.

Craig Mackail-Smith’s penalty was enough to defeat Mansfield Town 1-0 and fire to Luton an opening victory on home soil after taking just one point from their previous three games.

Hatters were left hanging on at the end though as Stags piled the pressure on, with Harris saying: “It’s a relief, it was a little bit nervous at the end which is understandable as we’ve conceded four goals in the last minute over a period of time which is something I haven’t experienced in my career.

“So we said to the players, for 60 minutes it was excellent, for the last 30 it was nervous and it will be, but lets hope that 30 minutes gets a bit lower and lower as the games goes on now.

“It’s a nice feeling, because you really, really can’t get across to people how gut-wrenching those last minute goals are and it’s the same for the fans as it is for us.

“We totally understand the fans frustrations, because we know what we’ve got in the squad.

“We have to try and turn the negatives into positives. In our last three games, we’ve beaten Cambridge and the Orient, so stats would say we’ve won three out of four. Maybe we can make it four out of five and then all of a sudden it rolls and it rolls and it rolls.”

Harris was also relieved with a first shut out of the campaign although the defence were indebted to keeper Mark Tyler for a string of excellent saves.

He added: “We’re delighted with the clean sheet as we thought Mark Tyler absolutely superb.

“So were the back four too as Scott Cuthbert came out through his sending off last week and Steve McNulty came in.

“That’s why we’ve got a strong squad and we do a lot of back four work every day. We work our back four, attack our back four sometimes with six, seven or eight players, so I was pleased with the clean sheet.”

Luton Town 1 Mansfield Town 0

A 57th minute Craig Mackail-Smith penalty earned Luton a first home league victory of the season, though whether it is a turning point or another false dawn, only time will tell, but for now it is a massive monkey off their collective back.

Palpable too, in amongst the shredded nerves and sheer relief, was the sense that they had managed to stop shooting themselves in the foot – as had been the case in all of their previous Kenilworth Road fourth tier encounters – eking out a maiden clean sheet of the campaign.

Now, after victory by the skin of their teeth, the work begins to ensure this does not remain another solitary shot in the dark, as transpired after their only previous three points, at Cambridge.

This new-look Hatters can take heed from last season's vintage who embarked on an 11-game unbeaten run this time last year, to breathe life into a stuttering start. To that end, there is still much work to do as goalkeeper Mark Tyler's nomination as man-of-the-match told its own story, as did the under-employment of opposite number Brian Jensen.

Thankfully though, in the immediate aftermath, that is all secondary to the only thing that really mattered – a Hatters victory.

In amongst the celebrations, there were still reserves of energy to rail against referee Kevin Johnson – a late change for Rob Lewis on the eve of the game – as the whistle-blower conspired to take an unwelcome centre stage.

El Classico-sized portions of players hitting the deck combined with persistent perceived injustices from the man in charge nullified the early tempo and riled the Kenilworth Road crowd as blind eyes were turned to off-the-ball misdemeanours and yellow cards issued when reds were in order. The frustratingly pedantic officialdom was, at times, only a TMO-littered step removed from the momentum-sapping Rugby World Cup interruptions experienced in England's opener less than 24 hours earlier. But football is supposed to be the beautiful game. This was not.

And when, at the end of a stop-start first half, Mackail-Smith dared to shatter that façade with a stunning overhead kick that nestled in the top corner, the linesman's flag was raised for offside.

At the other end, Luton didn't completely evict the resident blunders, but for once, they escaped punishment, such as when a Steve McNulty's early gaffe put Matt Green in front of goal only for Tyler to produce the first of his rescue acts.

Before that the hosts had started positively, the high point a Jonathan Smith shot saved by Jensen after a sweeping counter-attack in the eighth minute. But for all Luton's early intensity – which had Cameron McGeehan and Paddy McCourt at its fulcrum – they were impressive only outside Mansfield's penalty box. Indeed, the latter, restored to the starting 11 for the first time in almost a month, occasionally cut a frustrated figure as his team-mates failed to read his intentions. That was until his defence splitting assist for the penalty.

Mackail-Smith's will have felt hard done by to see a second goal disallowed this term but he was instrumental in the decisive moment just before the hour mark. Even then Mr Johnson attempted to steal his thunder, doling out a caution to Ryan Tafazolli even though, as last defender, he'd tripped the striker who was clean through on goal. It was far more clear-cut than the professional foul that earned Hatters centre back Scott Cuthbert a red card last week. Consistency? Not in League Two. While the real punishment was meted out by Mackail-Smith from the spot, for his third of the campaign, a reduction in Mansfield's numbers perhaps would have made for a far more comfortable finale.

Either side of the penalty, Tyler had been called into action, the first a heart-in-the-mouth stop that required two attempts to smother after Craig Westcarr had stolen in from a lightning counter. The second was a flying fingertip save to spectacularly deny Jack Thomas.

The goalie was then on hand to snuff out a golden chance for Mansfield substitute Adi Yussuf as Adam Chapman's route one ball threatened to be this week's customary defensive lapse.

Inevitably the Stags piled on the late pressure in the final stages, but rather than collapse Stephen O'Donnell produced a result-saving header on the goal-line.

Though there were four nerve-wracking added minutes, Mackail-Smith ensured Luton saw them out by Mansfield's corner flag and the relief at the final whistle was enormous.

Luton: Tyler, O'Donnell, Smith, McNulty, McGeehan (O'Brien, 86), Griffiths, McCourt (Lawless, 94), Lee, Mackail-Smith, McQuoid (Green, 80), Wilkinson

Unused subs: Hall, Marriott, Justham, Williams,

Mansfield: Jensen, Benning, Rose (Yussuf, 77), Pearce, Chapman, Clements (Thomas, 43), Green, Westcarr, Thomas (Lambe, 53), Tafazolli, Hunt

Unused subs: Marsden, Collins, Blair, McGuire

Referee: Kevin Johnson

Attendance: 7,939 (262)