Thanks for the advice guys, much appreciated!
AUGUST UPDATE
It was to be a tough start to the league campaign, away to recently relegated Southampton, but it was Millwall who had the better of the early exchanges nearly scoring in the opening minute as Danny Schofield's free kick whistled past the post. The first goal came after 12 minutes and it was Millwall debutant loanee Ritchie De Laet who scored it with a thumping header from Nadjim Abdou's corner. Minutes later the side from South London were 2-0 up as Neil Harris played a tidy through ball to Abdou and he ran unchecked into the Southampton penalty area before sliding the ball under the advancing Mike Pollitt.
With the game slipping away from his team Alan Pardew, the Southampton manager, was on his feet shouting instructions and the players responded almost immediately. On 19 minutes Rickie Lambert recieved the ball 20 yards from the opposition's goal and let fly with a glorious curling, dipping shot that wrong footed the Millwall goalkeeper, David Forde, and sailed into the net. And, just two minutes later, Lee Barnard scored the equaliser from a long ball over the top by Lambert.
With the momentum behind them, Southampton pressured the Millwall defence with Barnard and Lambert proving to be a handful for De Laet and Darren Ward. With 50 minutes gone Southampton won a free kick 30 yards from goal. Lambert hit a thunderous shot at goal which Forde palmed into the roof of the net. The goalkeeper could perhaps have done better, but the win was no less than Southampton deserved.
Despite being sitting a division below their opponents, visitors Bournemouth proved to be a tough proposition for Millwall in the 1st round of the Carling Cup.
The first 45 minutes were frantic, but both teams lacked bite in the final third and at half time the score remained goal-less. It could have been different had Shwan Jalal not made a terrific save to deny Zavon Hines in the 9th minute.
The second half was played at a slower pace but was no less conbatitive. Having been booked in the first half Millwall's Adam Bolder was lucky not to see red for a kick on Jeff Goulding in the 54th minute. Alan Dunne shot straight at the Bournemouth 'keeper on 56 minutes, and on 77 minutes Alan Connell was presented with an open Millwall goal but couldn't get the ball under control. The winner eventually came two minutes from time when Scott Guyett felled Zavon Hines just inside the Burnemouth area. Neil Harris stepped up to take the spot kick for Millwall sending Jalal diving in the wrong direction.
Millwall will now face Swansea (away) in the next round of the Carling Cup.
Both teams were looking for their first points of the season at the New Den today. From the kick off Millwall showed more attacking intent but in truth it was a poor first half of football with few chances at either end. In the second half Millwall manager Dan Lake made some tactical changes bringing left winger David Martin forward more, with Zavon Hines working the right flank in what appeared to be an unorthodox 4-3-3. The change paid off in the 53rd minute when Hines set about chasing Alan Dunne's through ball before crossing for the unmarked Martin to volley home. There were no further goals in the game, although this said more about the visitors' defensive tactics than the abilities of the Millwall forward line.
BREAKING TRANSFER NEWS:
Millwall started this game as they finished against Carlisle, playing something of a lop-sided 4-3-3 with David Martin roaming in off the left as an inside forward. Whether it was down to the tactics picked, superior finishing or the defensive niavety of their opponents could be debated at length but, whatever the reason, Millwall came away from this match clear winners.
The first goal was scored by Zavon Hines in the 17th minute, lifting a free kick over Oldham's five man wall and beyond the grasping Daryl Flahavan. The second came minutes later, Ritchie De Laet cleared the ball from the edge of the Millwall area to deep inside the Oldham half. Hines and Steve Morison wasted no time chasing the ball down and when Oldham's Martin Kelly dithered Steve Morison was on hand to steal the ball away. Clean through on goal with just the goalkeeper to beat Morison buried the ball in the bottom righthand corner of the net.
When Nadjim Abdou added a third with a stunning strike in the 51st minute it was no less than Millwall deserved. Substitute Nathan Porritt did hit the bar with a well struck free kick on 66 minutes but, otherwise, Oldham afforded little threat to the Millwall goal.
This wasn't a game that will live long in the memory of either set of fans, a bore draw played out on a Friday evening because the local police force expected trouble between opposing supporters.
In the second half Millwall's goalkeeper David Forde was called upon to make a number of stunning saves to keep his side in the game. Forde made three top class saves to prevent Freddie Sears, Adam Barrett and Dougie Freedman from scoring.
In injury time Millwall were reduced to ten men when Adam Bolder collected his second yellow card of the match, for a foul on Southend striker Freddie Sears. Bolder will now miss Millwall's Carling Cup game at Swansea.
It was always going to be a tough ask for League One outfit Millwall to overcome Championship Swansea in their own backyard. So it came as little surprise then when Swansea scored early in the game, on 15 minutes David Cottrill broke away on the right and drilled in a cross which Shefi Kuqi beat Darren Ward to and nodded home from 6 yards. Steve Morison had a great chance to equalise on 36 minutes, he out muscled Swans defender Ashley Williams to get to a David Martin cross but misdirected his header into the stands behind the goal. Then in the 41st minute Millwall were on the attack once again, Nadjim Abdou played David Martin into the box and his shot beat the Swan's keeper but went inches wide.
At times Swansea played fantastic passing football, and their superiority showed when they scored their second goal in the 64th minute. Dani Bautista swung a long cross over from the left which looked to be going out of play, but the Millwall defence had negleted to see David Cottrell's run from deep and, unmarked at the far post, he had an easy tap in. 2-0 down Millwall had to go looking for goals and in doing so they opened themselves up, Cedric Van Der Gun scored the Swan's third breaking free from his marker on 80 minutes before firing low and hard under David Forde.
On Wednesday night Millwall travelled to South Wales and took a beating at the hands of Swansea. With confidence low the players needed to get back to winning ways in the league, and a home game against struggling Brighton would prove to be the tonic they needed.
It only took six minutes for Millwall to score and banish the ghosts of their midweek Carling Cup defeat. Anton Jongsma picked up a loose ball 25 yards out and powered his way into the Brighton area before thumping the ball home for his first goal since joining the Lions.
Despite having the greater possession in the first 45 minutes, Millwall only led by a single goal at half time. Without a second goal it was possible that Brighton could hurt the Millwall team on the counter attack. It was in the 58th minute then that the Millwall players were able to breathe more easily, Brighton's goalkeeper Peter Brezovan dropped a David Martin free kick and this allowed Jongsma to pounce for his, and Millwall's, second goal of the game. A third came courtsey of a calamitous mistake in the Brighton defence. Substitute Peter Virgo left a loose ball for his goalkeeper to collect but he hadn't seen Neil Harris lurking, Harris got there before Brezovan could and he rounded the stranded 'keeper to score into an empty net.
AUGUST REVIEW
Will check on this now and again!