Stoke City defied the experts today and if I’m honest totally astonished me too by obtaining a result against Aston Villa that I scarcely believed possible. Having witnessed the defensive frailties at Bolton I feared the worst, unhappily telling colleagues all week that we’d get a footballing lesson from Villa, and that their forward line would run amok against our slow and suspect rearguard. I figured a defeat by at least two clear goals was on the cards and I had genuine fears of four goals flying in at the wrong end. But Stoke produced a memorable display to match the occasion of their first ever Premiership home match in front of a passionate crowd that was given as 27,500.
Joined by fellow Leeds Stokies Dave and Paddy, the day started well with an uneventful journey followed by home-made soup and North Staffs Oatcakes at my parents’ house in the garden no less. Had Summer arrived?! A planned pre-match pint with some of the Stokies that I’d visited Belgium with sadly didn’t happen, so it was into the ground to soak up the atmosphere rather than beer. We took up position in the South Stand which has been split to allow home fans to sit in what was once entirely the away end. This now meant I had been in every stand in the ground and it was impressive to look out on the Boothen End and the rest of the massive home support from this vantage point high in the South Stand corner.
Stoke manager Tony Pulis had made changes to the side that started at Bolton. Liam Lawrence and Ricardo Fuller both started to give us that extra creative and attacking threat we missed at the Reebok for most of the game. 
There were debuts for the two Fayes, Amdy replacing Glen Whelan in central midfield alongside Seyi Olofinjana, and Abdoulaye Faye replaced Ryan Shawcross in defence. Carl Dickinson started at Left Back while Richard Cresswell was replaced on the left by Lawrence. On paper it was a stronger side than on the opening day but would it be enough to cancel out Villa’s pace and skill?
Stoke started very brightly, roared on by a noisy home crowd. Most of the first 45 minutes was played in the Aston Villa half, the visitors unsettled by the Potters’ direct and physical play, and in my view were playing well below their capabilities. Rory Delap’s long throw-in routine was utilised regularly to unnerve Villa’s defence, although in the main they had the measure of it and dealt with most of the efforts fairly comfortably. Stoke were industrious and dominated possession without looking really dangerous. At the other end Villa’s chances were limited as Stoke controlled the first half, never giving the away side the chance to settle and get into their stride. They did appear to have a decent claim for a penalty when a rare foray into Stoke’s box saw Olofinjana lean on Agbonlahor and force him over. Referee Mark Halsey was unsighted, peering through a group of players, and he failed to point to the spot. However a few seconds later with 30 minutes on the clock he was awarding a penalty at the other end for Stoke! Delap appeared to be chopped by Villa captain Laursen after some neat work in the box as he attempted to pull the ball back into the danger area. Lawrence stepped up and coolly smote the ball hard and low into the corner just beyond the dive of Friedel who guessed the right way. It was Stoke’s first ever Premiership goal and the place when berserk with incredible scenes of jubilation. With the benefit of a slow motion replay after the game it looked like Delap made a meal of the slightest of clips, but from the stands in real time it looked a certain penalty. Fuller may have added an unlikely second goal just before half-time when he headed a Delap missile just inches wide. The Potters left the pitch to a huge ovation while without a doubt below par Villa trooped off to a half-time rollocking.
HT Stoke City 1 Aston Villa 0, and I decided against another dreadful Britannia cup of tea.
Predictably Aston Villa improved greatly in the second half. Their passing was more incisive, their approach more urgent, and soon Stoke were finding themselves pressed back, dropping deeper in a bid to quell the reinvigorated Villa. The away side’s midfield became more influential as they passed their around Stoke, and used their wide players more effectively than in the first half. There was a sense of inevitability when on 63 minutes John Carew equalised for the visitors. Good approach play culminated in a fine final move, Carew playing the ball into Young who beautifully back-heeled a return-pass allowing the striker to fire across Thomas Sorensen, the ball arrowing into the far corner. At this point Stoke fans would be forgiven for fearing the worst and wondering how many it might become if heads dropped. It was a deserved equaliser and in a quick spell after the goal Villa might have added another as they looked threatening every time they came forward. Gareth Barry was inches away from connecting with Young’s cross to give the visitors the lead. Villa were now dominating the game and their passing and movement had Stoke in forced retreat.
So it was against the run of play when Fuller put Stoke into the lead on 80 minutes. Olofinjana mopped up in midfield, played a ball forward to Lawrence who then slipped in a fine pass for Fuller to chase. A sublime flick on the turn unlocked the defence and the Jamaican powered away from his marker to be able to drill the ball into the far corner from a tight angle. It was something out of the blue from nothing made by the individual skill of Fuller, and it marked Stoke’s best piece of football in the game. The atmosphere had intensified again as the home support sensed an unlikely victory was now possible. 
But as the deafening strains of “Delilah” rang round the ground, a silly free-kick was given away in midfield just two minutes later and while the delivery was poor, the napping Stoke defence allowed Laursen to squeeze home from close range. The goal strangled the “Delilah” mid-flow and once again the harsh lesson at Bolton of mistakes being punished at this level had been unheeded.
By now I think the majority of Stoke fans would have settled for a point to remove the risk of conceding a late Villa winner. However in a final piece of drama it was Stoke who stole all three points. Mamady Sidibe, who had replaced Kitson on 76 minutes, sent the home fans wild when deep into injury time he got his head to a Delap throw-in hurled from the left. The big striker didn’t seem to know much about it as he had his back to goal in a crowd of players and merely thrust back his head. It was enough to send the ball into the net and the Stokies in the stands daft on delirium. It was the last action of the game, the perfect time to score, and the Britannia Stadium rocked like Stoke City had won the cup never mind a game.
FT Stoke City 3 Aston Villa 2, and I needed sweet tea for the shock!
Overall it was a very good display from Stoke City with lots of positives. A totally unexpected result and scoreline to be fair. It was a deserved win despite Villa bossing much of the second half and playing the better football during that time. However Stoke played the ball on the ground far more in this game, a few frustrating hopeful punts into the channels littered a game that saw more passing football than Stoke are usually credited with. There were impressive debuts for Faye and Faye, particularly Abdoulaye with his “thou shall not pass” dominance of whoever bore down on him, mixed with an ability to bring the ball out of defence. He also seemed to bring the best out of Cort, while Amdy Faye linked up well with Olofinjana, who also showed some good touches and much promise. The whole team worked hard for each other and showed great character to look for a winner. With Lawrence and Fuller in the side we look more threatening and the wonderful individual skill of Fuller fashioned a goal when I was beginning to question Stoke’s attacking threat and worried about having another goal in the side. When the ball was played on the ground Stoke looked better for it, showing they can pass the ball if they want to, the holding on to possession assisting the first half dominance over Villa. Some minor negatives are the tendency to rely heavily on Delap’s monster throws (about 10 throws produced a couple of clear chances, one leading to a goal), the use of hopeful punts into the channels to no one, and a few occasions of giving the ball away through sloppy passes or being out-muscled. We still sit too deep at times, and the defence is still not as tight as it should be. But it would be churlish to criticise that overall performance after such a great result. It was a huge improvement on last week and Villa are a better side than Bolton. There was encouragement for the future, and much cheer for the next week! Plenty to build on, and it instils hope for the season. With displays like that a trip to the Britannia might not be the pushover and easy three points that opponents might think. Well done Stoke!
Before heading back to Leeds we bumped into Oatcake Fanzine legend Old Stokie, the delight of the win producing a hearty hug from the City stalwart. There was even praise for Pulis from one of his biggest critics. As Old Stokie sauntered off to find his lift home, we made our way towards a celebratory bag of chips in Smithpool Road before the Padmobile made its way back north to Leeds. What a day, what a shock, what a result, what a fine bag of chips too. 
Hoarse but happy.
