West Brom Land Blow

West Brom struck first in the battle at the top as they defeated ThunderCats 2-1 at The Hawthorns. The match more than lived up to expectations with Leonardo Borja forcing Carson into an early leg save. West Brom’s first effort saw Tony Brown curl wide while the other chance of the half fell to the visitors but Nelson Queimado could only loop a header off-target. ThunderCats would take an early lead at the start of the second-half, though, as Paulino Ornelas steered in a fine shot. Darren Moore forced Magro into action from a powerful shot moments later and the home side began to find their attacking fluency from this point on. Brown would hit a shot over before Lee Hughes powered in a header for the equaliser. Silvio Falcao nearly restored the visitors’ lead but he mishit his shot and it trickled against a post while Hughes lobbed over at the other end. Hughes headed wide but West Brom would find the go-ahead goal as the brilliant Cyrille Regis planted a diving header beyond Magro. Brown forced the ‘keeper into another save while Carson punched away from Carlos Partini to ensure West Brom would go away with the points. DD was happy with what he called a ‘good’ win and explained that forward ‘Regis is still on fire.’ Meelas will know the importance the return match has for his side now as they look to close the gap at the top.

Manchester United were impressive winners as they defeated AFC Stanley 4-1 at Old Trafford. An early free-kick saw Darren Gibson hit an effort too close to Hessbo before he hit another one wide minutes later. United would hit the front on 11 minutes as Eric Cantona slotted home a penalty before Wayne Rooney brushed a post with a powerful strike. Cantona would toe-poke over as the chances kept coming while Gibson hit yet another free-kick over. The set-pieces would continue to arrive with Hessbo denying Gibson before Jon MacClintock put a header over in a rare raid by the visitors. United would double their advantage before the break as a precise header by Ulrich Kischko evaded Hessbo and found the corner of the net. More chances followed in an entertaining second-half with Rooney heading well-wide. Stanley would improve also and Garry Molseley thought he had them back within a goal but was flagged offside. Alan Martindale would reduce the deficit, though, with a flick header on 58 minutes only for a lob by Cristiano Ronaldo to restore the two-goal cushion four minutes later. Kischko would hit a half-volley wide before defying a tight angle on 65 minutes to make it 4-1. Stanley saw Molseley demand a save out of Kuszczak while Hessbo produced excellence at the other end to stop a Michael Carrick header. Kirk Armitage wasted a headed opportunity for Stanley while Kischko shot too close to Hessbo as the half continued to ebb-and-flow. Molseley added to the visitors’ woes by getting sent-off for arguing while Armitage put a late header wide to complete a miserable day. United are now in fourth at the halfway stage and with a consistent run of form a high finish looks more than possible. Stanley News admitted that ‘Markham33 has a lot of hard work to do to lift his players’ but the experienced manager is sure to get a response out of them for Tuesday.

The Vikings picked up a big three points at Underdogz United as they won 2-1. An early free-kick saw Aris Almanidis put the visitors in front while Zlatan Izuhimovic was denied by Connely at the other end. This would be the last of the goalmouth action in the opening 45 minutes and the game would remain tight in the second-half. Thorbjorn Lind hit a stunning strike against the bar as the visitors looked to extend their lead and they looked like paying for this miss as Izuhimovic shot home from a corner on 76 minutes. However, Tomas Master would defy a tight angle to put The Vikings back in front on 85 minutes and it would be a lead they would keep. After the game a war of words broke out between the respective managers. Izu blamed the defeat on his coaches while Eagles retorted that ‘the buck stops’ with the manager and he should ‘stop making excuses.’ The young manager did manage to get the final word, though, adding that the ‘excuses were legitimate’ and explained at his age he is ‘hardly allowed to be the manager of a top-flight club.’ The return match promises to be interesting.

Kirkbride Strollers kept up their excellent form as they disposed of Santos 2-0 at The Bush. Billy Maneater had a shot saved by Rodenas while Torbjorn Alshammar’s shot was saved by Hill at the other end. Rodenas produced more excellence to deny Maneater while Robbie Mitchell hit a free-kick over for Santos as the game continued apace. Keith Ellison would be the next to miss a chance for the hosts while Mitchell hit a free-kick wide for the visitors as the half finished goalless. Brian Wills started the second-half by heading off-target for the Strollers while he also shot wide on 64 minutes. The chances continued to fall to the forward and he was unfortunate with a diving header which struck a post but he did get his goal on 66 minutes by shooting past Rodenas from a tight angle. Hill kept the hosts’ lead intact as he punched away an Alshammar header and the Strollers took advantage with Stephen Robinson finishing off a breakaway move for a second goal on 84 minutes. Jazza said his side ‘deserved the 3 points’ and added that they ‘are closing in on (their) target of a top 5 finish.’ Sean7 has seen his side fall out of the top two and they now occupy eighth following a disappointing run; the manager will be desperate for three points which will get them back on the right track.

Sanity Clause made it three games unbeaten as they defeated Tranmere 1-0 at Darkdale. Boguslaw Stanczuk powered in the goal on eight minutes after Tranmere failed to deal with a corner. The visitors tried to respond but Marten Wessman shot wide while Karsten Seibert’s lob unfortunately bounced clear off the bar. Geomar Altieri did have the ball in the net on the stroke of half-time but was denied by a dubious offside call. The second-half saw Adam Mlynarz have a header saved while Altieri shot wide as Tranmere continued to be frustrated. Sanity Clause had the final chance of the game but Ginel Aluna couldn’t make a headed chance count and they had to settle for a 1-0 win. Crismorena appears to have his side moving in the right direction but only time will tell whether they can make a move out of the relegation zone before the season ends. Baz is in exactly the same position with his Tranmere side and will put big importance on winning the return match on Tuesday.

Totaalvoetbal were the day’s other winners as they comprehensively outplayed Hun Haters to record a 5-0 win. William Ralph Dean powered in the opener after only two minutes and the forward might have made it 2-0 a minute later but got his header all wrong. Rodney Shuttlewood would make it two moments later, though, with a powerful strike while Dean hit a post with a fine strike on the half-hour. Bryan Robson would hit a shot over before Pierre van Diemen headed home the third before the break. The second-half was a quieter affair with the visitors having a free-kick from Alasdair Logan saved by Rimmer. The hosts hit back and went 4-0 ahead through a mishit Edwin Hayter shot and the rout was complete when van Diemen placed a shot beyond Boruc on 70 minutes. Robin Meeblind was ‘content’ with the win but warned against ‘complacency’ ahead of the return fixture. Celticchris’ side look doomed following the defeat and the remains of the season will need to see them improve their form to safeguard some of their players’ futures.