You tend to make some decisions in life which with hindsight would have been best not taken. I usually knock this piece up on a Thursday, mail it to the experts, and it hits the site during the weekend. For this one I gave it some thought, and decided to leave it until Saturday morning - to include the Derby news.

Boy do I feel gutted right now, it would have been easier on the mind, and soul, if I had kept to my normal schedule - like you all I feel shell shocked and quite miserable about the happenings on a bad Friday the thirteenth. Maybe not as shell shocked as I was at 3.45 p.m. But every bit as miserable.

What went wrong? Before I give my views on Towns apparent failings, I must congratulate the best team on the day - Whitehaven. While adding that perhaps in Paul Cullen they have a coach who is well practised in the Alex Ferguson school of 'mind games'. During the week the Haven coach was bemoaning a dreadfully "long injury list". Now I'm not au fait with who is on the payroll at the recre, but I could only think of the unfortunate Chris Campbell, David Fatialofa, and youngster Marc Jackson as absentees from their regular line up on Friday, (no doubt I'll be corrected). We were without the very influential Sicey, and the destructive running of Wilma.

However we still paraded a team of talents that, when in the mood, can match and beat the best in the NFP. And in that sentence I have included the missing link of a mediocre Town display, i.e. 'When in the mood'. Did I see shades of the Wakefield cup tie re-emerge during that horrendous first forty? A contentious issue eh?

Am I being cruel by saying our players seemed to lack motivation? Tell me your views please! Or were Town knocked back by a few debatable calls by the whistler? Here we had a 'rookie' ref in charge of a major clash of local rivals, not a good appointment by the RFL. Let's believe Town were 'in the mood' as they strode out onto the arena. Surely that would be the case, if not why not?

But circumstances early in the game very much favoured Whitehaven. A start which visibly inspired the home team - and their fans. People who had shouted them home against second place Keighley five days earlier - they knew better than us of what Haven are capable of. Those early stages of the game were in the end significant. Whitehaven enjoyed almost total possession, I repeat - because of some dubious ref calls.The first try included a blatant obstruction in the crucial line break.

The second half mini revival was blotted out by at least one other bad call. The O'Neill try was never a clean grounding of the ball, the touch judge even indicated no try - Mr King preferred to remain consistently mediocre by giving it anyway. Okay having said all that Town were second place in the whole scheme of things. What now?

Obviously Barrow will be hoping to capitalise on the doldrums Town will be suffering. Can you Townies recall losing at home to Whitehaven, on yet another Good(bad)Friday? It wasn't so long ago so you should remember it, and also the fact that Barrow away was next up - and we gave them a thrashing for our pains. Town will come back from this latest setback, can you fans do the same please?

Actually I've just perused my excellent filing system (box in loft) to actually confirm that year I talk of - and it was in fact April 1994. Hecking flip - time really does fly when one is enjoying life.....what a drag at present though man.
K.S.