Where is the voice of reason when you need it? Someone needs to have a word

Right then, hands up, who’s furious with Colchester United and their pathetically petulant chairman, Robbie Cowling?

Stan’s rage at the Col U ticketing situation, obviously not helped by missing out in the ballot and subsequently being too late to bag a seat in the home areas, is only likely to increase in the week ahead.

The looming realisation that he’s going to unnecessarily miss out on watching a match due to the childish petulance of a man clearly not fit to be in such a privileged position, will only fan the flames further.

Now, it would be nice to discuss a relatively comfortable victory and the delight felt that Paul Lambert (‘Is a football genius…’) will not be off to fill Owen Coyle’s boots and flat cap oop north…..

Unfortunately Stan is unable to do this until he’s vented his spleen at Cowling and Co.

It should be absolutely clear that Stan has no gripe whatsoever with the good folk of Colchester. In fact Colchester is quite literally in Stan’s blood. Mother was born there and the maternal side of the family built their lives and businesses there for decades.

In the bedside cabinet are Grandfather’s war medals with the address of 52 Winnock Road, Colchester carefully written on the brown paper wrapping that enveloped the box they were despatched to in 1919.

Such an historic town, and good football club deserve better than to be represented by Cowling. Through nothing more than a bruised ego, he has decided to punish law-abiding football fans, and create enormous friction between two set of fans who previously possessed nothing more than an admiration for each other’s Ipswich hating credentials.

There is now a fear that Cowling’s decision, presumably a decision made and implemented with his former drink-driving chief executive, will impact on Colchester fans as much as on City ones.

There can be no doubt that significant numbers of Norwich fans will have tickets in the home areas.

This, combined with Cowling’s assertion that City supporters sitting anywhere other than the away section, will be ejected from the ground regardless of their behaviour, can only point towards problems and a very real and unnecessary threat of disorder.

What has flummoxed Stan, is that neither Essex nor Norfolk Police, or indeed the FA have intervened in this scenario. Surely when a decision that affects crowd safety is made, based on the sentiment contained within the following statement, a third party should have done something?

‘However, the Norwich board have acted appallingly towards our club recently and I’m not sure I have ever wanted to win a game of football so badly.

“Therefore, on this occasion, I will do everything in my power to stack whatever odds I can in our favour and if that does mean an empty seat rather than an away supporter then so be it.’ Robbie Cowling

Would the Metropolitan Police have sat and said nothing if the Millwall chairman had based a decision about ticket allocation for a forthcoming game against West Ham on such petty small mindedness? Of course they wouldn’t, they’d have stepped in. The whole situation is utterly unacceptable on so many levels.

And to think that Cowling has a gripe with the ‘arrogant’ behaviour of the City board…..

Blimey. Pots, kettles and black spring to mind!

Anyway, enough of that chump, Stan has vented his spleen and is starting to feel the love again.

The memory of Holt springing the off-side trap and charging, bull-like, towards the Barclay on Saturday before rounding the keeper is enough to thaw the most frozen of City hearts, so breathe deeply Stan and relive that moment.

Regardless of what had gone on before it was just a lovely finale to a long old week. It (admittedly assisted by some post match beers) acted as an exorcism of some of the worries that had built up over this time.

The dramatic speed with which Lambert’s odds came in on the Burnley job sent a chill down the spine of even those who dismissed out-of-hand the first rumours of ‘Lambert for Burnley’ with a snort of derision. Stan just took to his bed for a few hours with a cold towel on his for head.

So then, in a nutshell, the first week of 2010? Holt is a legend, Lambert loves us (but probably not quite as much as we love him) and Robbie Cowling is a grade A…… no, I won’t say it….

That would be childish wouldn’t it…