LAST weekend’s game with Millwall was the first time this season when it was difficult not to have at least a small amount of attention on what was happening elsewhere to fellow strugglers Blackpool, Fleetwood and Doncaster.

The outcome was that at the final whistle, our good result against Millwall was rather devalued by all of our opponents doing equally well or better. Only doomed Crewe lost.

So the trend continues - good performances against a background of a perilous League placing, with time ticking away.

We are still not without hope, but unless results favour us this weekend, then we start to become very long odds against survival, despite our good form.

Crunch time is upon us, and if there is going to be a twist then this weekend would be perfect timing. We can do no more than go to Blackpool and win, in the knowledge that the other strugglers have tough games on paper.

A draw with Millwall is a good result as they are powerful, organised and confident, with the winning habit.

Their robust approach was expected, and we rose to the challenge all over the pitch.

If you don’t handle Millwall’s front two of Gregory and Morrison you will get trampled, and this was an area in which we excelled, with Kent and Eastman standing up to the front runners, contesting everything and allowing them precious few half chances near goal.

At times it was an old-fashioned physical clash played on the edge of legality, but referee Johnson generally had the measure of the situation.

With the hugely influential Garvan unavailable, Tom Lapslie came in and energetically patrolled the centre of the pitch, with his defensive mobility compensating for the loss of Garvan’s extra experience and creative vision.

Tom covers more ground, quicker, getting from box to box as a matter of habit and he can be pleased with his contribution until replaced by Darren Ambrose at a stage when the pace was slackening.

Ambrose clearly relished a return to the old central position he has enjoyed earlier in his career, and it provides another valuable option to the manager.

We needed to be competitive down the centre of the pitch as Millwall were as strong in central defence as they were with their front two pairing.

Possibly our biggest achievement was to withstand a couple of spells of second half pressure, when a number of corners and free kicks saw our penalty box loaded with Millwall’s heavy brigade. Heroic work by Eastman, Kent, Shorey and Porter in particular kept our goal intact. At times it was a wee bit brutal in there.

At the other end of the pitch, we so nearly worked an opening or two, Porter leading the line and Massey, Lee and Moncur always mobile and inventive.

The South Stand in particular was willing a goal to really put the cat among Millwall’s pigeons, but the right final ball was missing on the two or three occasions when a goal could have been on the cards.

On reflection it was a good point against a side who look capable of cruising into the play-offs and faring very well when they get there.

Millwall manager Neil Harris is building his reputation and appears to be a manager on the up. The 1,800 Millwall fans in the stadium were an influence on the atmosphere, but they knew that the game was evenly balanced and they were rarely in full voice. There were faint echoes of the Preston game at the end of last season, but the triumphant finale was missing.

U’s manager Kevin Keen, quietly and efficiently, has steadied the ship and has got his side performing consistently. It’s no mean feat, as a month ago we were all secretly wondering how an inexperienced manager’s self-belief could survive a hideous run of results.

Kevin has proved his pedigree by pulling us through with his wits and good-nature still intact, as his reputation grows. Whatever faces us over the next month, he will be leading from the front as performances out on the pitch have largely done his talking for him. After all, it’s not rocket science; it’s far harder than that!