The old saying "it was a goal worth winning any game" has probably been churned out already and it was certainly true of Geremi's free kick. The Irons acquitted themselves very admirably against the reigning champions and I for one wasn't particularly disappointed at the loss.

Thanks to this stupid daylight saving business and Foxtel's annoying habit of only naming the times for Southern states (combined with my laziness I guess), I missed the entire first bloody half so I can't comment on that. But in the second half we looked really good, and gave Chelsea a real run for their 3 points. I thought the home side deserved to win, as they had better chances than us and their defence was magnificent, but it wouldn't have been much of a surprise if we had scored an equaliser. The best thing was that we looked like a team and lots of players got lots of ball, which is brilliant to see. If we could bring Tevez into the game like we did Bowyer and Etherington we'll be a fearsome side.

Player ratings (second half)

Green 8 - Once again, super confident. I like this guy a lot.
Konchesky 7 - It must be said, again, that his crossing is absolutely dire. However, he defended very well and when he comes forward it forces the opposition midfield back and provides space for Etherington to work his magic. I'd still rather see McCartney there as he seems to do both jobs well.
Ferdinand 7 - His only error was letting, I think, Lampard through for a shot, but he must have known Tubby would send it skywards.
Gabbidon 6 - Gave the ball away horribly at one point and failed to make amends but got lucky. Otherwise was a good performance.
Spector 6 - Caught out of position again once or twice but I think he's learning. Did well against a difficult opponent.
Etherington 8 - Caused all sorts of problems and desperately unlucky to be subbed.
Reo-Coker 6 - Buzzed about and got involved.
Mullins 7 - I don't generally see why people rate Mullins so highly but he did very well today and got stuck in. Passing needs improving.
Bowyer 7 - Looked like he could have been our best player early on before tiring. Influential.
Tevez 7 - When he got the ball he looked threatening. Unfortunately he didn't get it often but it wasn't through lack of effort. Starting to meld with the team for sure.
Zamora 7 - Lots of effort and I thought he might have got a goal if he'd stayed on.

Harewood 6 - Not involved at all.
McCartney 7 - Not much chanced but looked good in a brief appearance.
Sheringham 6 - Don't remember seeing him with the ball.