When can we have Mr Swarbrick again please?
You may recall me telling you in my Huddersfield match preview that Neil Swarbrick's previous game in charge of a Spurs game was 17 months ago in April 2016, when we beat Stoke 4-0 away! It is a mystery to me why we don't seem to see this referee very often, and in 12 games looking after us since October 2012, he has only seen one Spurs defeat. He's seen plenty of wins; plenty of Harry Kane goals and another 4-0 win when we beat Newcastle 4-0 away in February 2014. So - the only question is when can we see you again please Mr Swarbrick?
Perhaps on October 28th when we shall be seeking to extend our fantastic run of away wins (6) in the Premier League, at Old Trafford. I suspect we will have to wait longer, as that game will no doubt be gven to one of thee higher profile officials. Mr. Swarbrick obviously cuts such an unassuming figure that Sky's commentator for the Saturday lunchtime game kept calling him Craig Pawson. I can tell you that in the Spurs Odyssey records, Craig Pawson does not compare favourably with Neil Swarbrick, who does have a good average for any of our current referees. He won't be able to help us in Madrid in two weeks' time, of course, and we will be sorely tested in our efforts to win an eighth consecutive away game in Premier League and European games.
I bet you were expecting a Harry Kane headline, but I will inevitably write more about Harry in my September review later this week. Of course, Harry was voted man of the match - for the third consecutive game and for the fourth time in his last five games.
Credit must go to left back Ben Davies, who also scored more than 8 out of 10 for his performance at The John Smith's Stadium. You can see the full result of your votes here
My good friend Gary Parker has prepared his first "Like4Like" table, which shows that Spurs have matched their results in the 7 games against the same (or replacement promoted teams) teams last season, but it is no secret that our home record has suffered. After the first seven games last season, we were three points better off and in second place to Machester City, who we beat 2-0 without Harry Kane. (Pep Guardiola please note!) Note that last season was our best Premier League start, and it was always going to be difficult for Spurs to match last season's records. They'll have a go though!
Results 30.09-01.10.17
Hds'field 0-4 Spurs
B'mouth 0-0 Leicester
Man Utd 4-0 C. Palace
Stoke 2-1 S'hampton
West Brom 2-2 Watford
West Ham 1-0 Swansea
Chelsea 0-1 Man City
Arsenal 2-0 Brighton
Everton 0-2 Burnley
Newcastle 1-1 Liverpool
Premier League Table - 2017-18
P W D L F-A GD Pts
1. Man City 7 6 1 0 22-2 20 19
2. Man Utd 7 6 1 0 21-2 19 19
3. Spurs 7 4 2 1 14-5 9 14
4. Chelsea 7 4 1 2 12-6 6 13
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5. Arsenal 7 4 1 2 11-8 3 13
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6. Burnley 7 3 3 1 7-5 2 12
7. Liverpool 7 3 3 1 13-12 1 12
8. Watford 7 3 3 1 11-12 -1 12
9. Newcastle 7 3 1 3 7-6 1 10
10. West Brom 7 2 3 2 6-8 -2 9
11. H'dsfield 7 2 3 2 5-7 -2 9
12. S'hampton 7 2 2 3 5-7 -2 8
13. Stoke 7 2 2 3 7-11 -4 8
14. Brighton 7 2 1 4 5-9 -4 7
15. West Ham 7 2 1 4 7-13 -6 7
16. Everton 7 2 1 4 4-12 -8 7
17. Leicester 7 1 2 4 9-12 -3 5
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18. Swansea 7 1 2 4 3-8 -5 5
19. B'mouth 7 1 1 5 4-11 -7 4
20. C. Palace 7 0 0 7 0-17 -17 0
