Chris Foy was the talking point after a resilient and encouraging second half Stoke performance as he denied Jon Walters a debut goal by failing to allow a 90th minute goal which every man and his dog could see was over the line.

Unbelievable… ©GettyImages

Stoke lined up with the same midfield from Wolves much to many a Stoke fan’s annoyance but it was the introduction of the relatively unknown Walters that held most interest and he didn’t disappoint. I’ll admit, like many Stoke fans, I knew very little of Jon Walters when he signed (other than an amusing middle name) so was looking forward to seeing how he would fit in. He was paired up top with Fuller in the withdrawn target man role and performed brilliantly showing glimpses of strength, technique, enthusiasm and surprisingly creativity – he won most of his headers and amazingly, you’re going to love this, they were often directed to another Stoke player!

Stoke didn’t start well and Spurs seemed to be playing keep ball before bursting into life with the ever lively Lennon and Bale pulling the strings down the flanks. It was the former who twice instigated moves for the latter to score twice, one which bounced off his face and the second a beautifully taken volley on his increasingly notorious left foot. The first goal was disappointing as, for me, Stoke failed to clear their lines twice, when the ball went up into the air the header was there to be won yet Faye seemed to bottle it and merely jumped with Crouch who headed the ball for Ryan to make a hash of a clearance off Bale’s face.

Stoke weren’t out of it for too long and excellent work by Walters led to a corner which Fuller scrambled home as Gomes flapped and harried as only he can, much like Lehmann when he was at Arsenal, the Brazilian seems to fall apart if a player takes up a position anywhere near him from a corner. As for Spurs’ second goal, I’m already sick of everyone talking about this ‘early contender…’ to go through it again, so I won’t…

Fuller scrambles home… ©GettyImages

What I will discuss though is the main talking point of the game, that being the disallowed goal that Walters bundled over the line only for Crouch to catch the ball and throw it back out again. The referee, Mr Foy, is not too well thought of in these parts already and this latest faux pas will do little to rectify that. Foy was merely 2 or 3 yards away from the incident, he had an entirely unobscured view of the ‘goal’, he even put his whistle to his mouth before looking through 15 players to his linesman 40 yards away for confirmation – just how would HE have been able to see that?! The players naturally surrounded the Referee only to be told that he didn’t see it – if he couldn’t see it then the ball was behind the post and at the angle he was at that can only mean one thing and that’s a goal.

I was frustrated that we didn’t get the point we so rightly deserved and though Harry will tell anyone who listens his keeper was fouled, that wasn’t even being close to given by the referee or linesman and as such isn’t relevant to this particular talking point. We saw some really good play in the second half and Tuncay’s introduction really injected some enthusiasm into proceedings as well as uppping the tempo to get the crowd going. The diminutive Turk continues to impress with his flicks and urgency but he once again missed an open goal which clearly angered the Manager who still refuses to give him more time on the pitch.

With the positive of Walters and the frustration of Tuncay came the disappointment for Sidibe, who went down off the ball with no-one around holding the back of his ankle, it has since transpired that big Mama could miss the rest of the season with a snapped Achilles, the despair was plain to see on his face and I for one wish Mama all the best in his recovery, he has been unlucky in the last few years with injuries and whilst he is most likely the least effective striker we have, he has never ever given less than 100% when he has pulled on the red and white of Stoke.

Out for the season? ©PAPhotos

I’m not sure Mama’s injury will alter Pulis’ thoughts in the transfer market as he surprisingly started the season less reliant on the big Malian. That said, I expect to see nothing less than a flurry of Stoke activity in the coming week and a bit as Pulis looks to address the gaping issues at full back, right and centre midfield. I would hope we will see 4 or 5 new faces who can improve the squad and I’m looking forward to how it all takes shape and I’ve naturally booked the Transfer Deadline day off too!

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