I was slightly concerned to see that, due to illnesses and suspensions, of our usual back four only Franck Leboeuf and Emerson Thome were in evidence, bolstered by the increasingly confident Bernard Lambourde and a keen but inexperienced John Terry. Jon Harley was also called up at left wingback for Babayaro, who was on International duty, and Dan Petrescu had a solid game on the right. To be fair they did very well together, but Tottenham exploited the inevitable misunderstandings and gaps produced by an unfamiliar unit, and Ed De Goey was called upon to make some of the best saves I've seen him make since he came to Chelsea. Without him we would have lost 5-1 at least. The high point was a magnificent double save, where he somehow palmed away a vicious curling shot from "Sicknote" Anderton and then got up like greased lightning to save the follow up from Iversen at almost point blank range.

We had to put up with watching Chelsea under the cosh for forty five minutes, which did little to improve our humour, so I was quick to dash down into the stand to get the drinks just before half time. I ordered three bovrils and a coffee, which the spotty kid behind the counter duly produced. He then informed me in a squeaky voice that "We've got no yids". I pointed out to him that although I applauded his fanaticism, there was no place for racial stereotyping and abuse of Tottenham fans in this day and age (well, you have to try and set an example, don't you ?), but he kept insisting that there were no yids until I realised with horror that he was in fact saying "We've got no LIDS". This meant that I had to carry four cups of scalding hot liquid against a tide of drunks all bent on getting to the bogs. You can imagine the result. I've still got the burn marks on my fingers, and there's more than one bloke nursing his scalded testicles this morning..

The second half began much as the first had ended, with Tottenham frustratingly keeping up the pressure, much to our disgust, although I'm pleased to say that for the most part the West Stand crowd were still encouraging the boys rather than resorting to the usual slagging that accompanies anything less than five goals. This went on and on with seemingly no rest, with De Goey keeping us in the game with some superb keeping. There was one heart-stopping moment when he went down to save a shot that was deflected away from the dive, but he flung out a hand while lying there and miraculously palmed the ball off the line. He even got a round of applause from the Spurs mob for that. At the other end, Ian Walker kept us amused with some circus antics involving sliced clearances and mad runs out of the penalty area to act as an unconvincing sweeper. England's number three's crowning achievement was letting the ball slip through his fingers while fielding an innocent high cross with nobody from either team near him. The ball hit the ground and bounced crazily onto the bar, narrowly avoiding a goal. Classic. How we laughed.

The game desperately needed a kick up the arse, and it got it when George Weah and Chris Sutton came on for Flo and Poyet with around 25 minutes to go. Weah got a huge cheer, and his arrival seemed to galvanise both the crowd and players. Chelsea went from whipping boys to the more familiar conquering heroes within seconds, it seemed. Sutton was making a nuisance of himself, and Weah was already being man marked. It was noticable how the tactics changed when the pair came on, with loads of crosses aimed at Sutton to nod down for Weah, who looked fit and classy. The magic moment everyone was praying for came agonisingly late in the game, in the eighty-seventh minute, to be precise, with Dennis Wise pouncing on a loose ball and floating in a cross that Weah rose above everyone to nod home past the stranded Walker. We went absolutely stark, staring mental. The scenes were reminiscent of the 1997 Cup Final. After all, it was Tottenham..

There was one final incident of note that warmed us all up. Tottenham mounted a last desperate attack that resulted in a shot that De Goey almost spilled on his line, but he had definitely grasped the ball in both hands as Sherwood and Iversen took it upon themselves to kick both the ball and De Goey into the net. They were immediately joined by twenty of the other players as it all went off, comically, still inside the net. It gave us all the chance to bay for blood, though, and was thoroughly enjoyable. Naturally the ref gave the kick our way, but it was bloody funny watching Ginola arguing the toss with the both the ref and Franck Leboeuf, as he had been doing, with no luck, throughout the game every time he got tackled. Having watched him at close quarters throughout the second half, I can confirm that he's a whinging cheat, which is all the more irritating when you consider what a great player he can be.

To sum up, if I had any compassion for Tottenham fans (which I obviously haven't), I'd have felt sorry for them last night. A neutral would have said that they didn't deserve to lose. I, on the other hand, would say that they didn't deserve to win either, purely because they're Tottenham. In any case, It's a moot point now. We've kept the ten year unbeaten run going, and I'll be looking forward to another boost at Three Point Lane. Cheers !