Scott Vernon Misses The Gold: U’s V Terriers

A Home From Home: ‘Vernonator` Misses Out On Gold Standard As U`s Being Life At New Ground

Colchester United (0)

Huddersfield Town (0)


Saturday, August 16th, 2008

Attendance: 5, 940

Scott Vernon missed the gold medal on history`s podium as Colchester United began competitive life at their new Community Stadium with a goalless draw against Huddersfield in League One.

During Team GB`s weekend gold rush, with eight first place finishes athletes over the weekend, substitute Vernon fell short of completing an historic personal hat-trick. Had the young striker, introduced for twenty minutes to go, managed to steer any of his late efforts past opposing goalie Matthew Glennon, he would have gone down as the U`s first meaningful scorer.

Having secured silver, after a friendly goal against Athletico Bilbao made him the first Colchester player to strike at the new ground, and a bronze, for being the last home scorer at Layer Road, Vernon looked likely to triumph again.

So much for sentiment. If history had been smiling on Colchester United at all on Saturday, a picture-book Mark Yeates free-kick after half-an-hour would have already sailed into the net long before Vernon`s introduction.

As it was, the winger`s fantastic shot shaved the woodwork and bounced up over the bar, leaving the score still black.

A bobbled short from midfielder Johnnie Jackson, and a surprise dash into the six-yard box from right-back John White, whose effort was blocked, amounted to the sum-total of Colchester`s first-half offerings for an expectant crowd.

Huddersfield`s potentially dangerous front pairing of Danny Cadamarteri and Andy Booth, one of Premiership Everton and Sheffield Wednesday respectively, had a hard time penetrating the U`s defence, all-changed since the club`s defeat on the opening day defeat to Hartlepool.

Giant defender Matt Heath and former Barnsley man Paul Reid looked solid in front of home stopper, Dean Gerken. After admitting fault for two of the four goals conceded in last weekend`s league-match 4-2 reverse, new captain Chris Coyne had to made do with a place on the bench. In all, Colchester made two line-up changes between last weekend and this.

As an opening gambit in this game of chess-like play, which eventually ended all-square, Yeates` thumping try had all the finesse needed to launch Colchester up the table and into a successful new neon-lights era.

The promising hit, however, did not pave way for a goal rush. By the time striker Clive Platt`s wayward punt ballooned wide late on, although he had seemed destined to score, a draw looked inevitable. All guts, sure, but Colchester did not quite have enough guile to get an anticipated victory here, hence the stalemate.

As for Scott Vernon, they call him The Vernonator in these parts. Safe to say, then, that he`ll be back.