Saturday Clockwatch: Premier League, Championship and more – as it happened!
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Version 0 of 1. 4.59pm GMT16:59 That’s all from me folks. Thanks for all the emails and tweets and opinions. The match reports will be up on the site in a matter of moments or if Manchester City against Newcastle is more your thing, you can join Nick Ames over here. Enjoy the rest of your weekend! Bye! 4.57pm GMT16:57 And there goes the final whistles. It ended: Aston Villa 1-2 Stoke; Chelsea 1-1 Burnley; Crystal Palace 1-2 Arsenal; Hull 2-1 QPR; Sunderland 0-0 WBA; Swansea 2-1 Man Utd. There were also a couple of incredible scorelines in the Championship (where Derby go top after defeating Sheffield Wednesday), League One and League Two. You can find all of them over here. And you can find all the necessary tables here. 4.53pm GMT16:53 GOAL! Crystal Palace 1-2 Arsenal (Murray) Murray gives his side hope of a draw scoring from close range after a penalty-area scramble. Updated at 5.12pm GMT 4.51pm GMT16:51 GOAL! Aston Villa 1-2 Stoke (Moses) Moses won it. Moses scored it. Updated at 5.06pm GMT 4.50pm GMT16:50 PENALTY TO STOKE AND RED CARD FOR VLAAR Poor Tim! 4.49pm GMT16:49 Some European football news: PSG lead Toulouse, 1-0, after 45 minutes #PSGTFC pic.twitter.com/6ArA4ziPi2 90' Four minutes of extra time as Barça are in dire need of a goal to salvage a draw here at #CampNou! FCB 0 - 1 MAL #FCBlive 4.48pm GMT16:48 We are now into injury time around the grounds. 4.48pm GMT16:48 GOAL! Hull 2-1 QPR (N'Doye) Rob Green pulls off a belter of a save but the ball makes its way out to the left-hand side. It it sent back into the zone commonly known as the mixer by Brady and N’Doye heads his side back into the lead. Updated at 5.00pm GMT 4.46pm GMT16:46 More Championship goals. Norwich are 3-0 up; Wolves are 5-0 up; Brighton are 4-2 up. In League One, Sheffield United have managed to drag themselves back into the game. It’s now 2-2 against Coventry. It looks like Colchester are hanging on against Bristol City. Just about. 4.43pm GMT16:43 @ianmccourt surely should have been straight red for Barnes and a yellow for Matic's reaction. it was not a violent reaction, it was a shove 4.41pm GMT16:41 GOAL! Chelsea 1-1 Burnley (Mee) Moments ago, Courtois pulled off a great save to keep his side in the lead but that means nothing now. Burnley won a corner. That was swung into the Chelsea box by Trippier and Mee found enough space to head it home. 2 - Ben Mee’s goal was only the second that Chelsea have conceded from a corner in the league all season (Okore for Aston Villa). Shock. Updated at 4.57pm GMT 4.38pm GMT16:38 More drama from the Derby game. Wednesday have just had Keiren Westwood sent off for taking down Tom Ince and been hit with a penalty. Darren Bent steps up to take it and Darren Bent scores. If they can keep their lead and Brentford beat Bournemouth, then Derby go top. 4.35pm GMT16:35 Some scores from the Championship. Derby are back in it. It’s now 2-2 against Sheffield Wednesday. Norwich are 2-0 up against Watford. And finally, Wolves are now 3-0 up against Rotherham. Updated at 4.36pm GMT 4.33pm GMT16:33 Back to that sending off for Matic. What happened was Barnes put in a really awful, leg-breaking style challenge on the Chelsea midfielder and Matic reacted and duly saw red. Barnes, however, saw nothing. Poor stuff from Martin Atkinson. 4.31pm GMT16:31 GOAL! Swansea 2-1 Manchester United (Gomis) Ki passed to Shelvey. He thundered one from 30 yards out and it took a deflection off Gomis before finding the back of the net. Updated at 4.33pm GMT 4.30pm GMT16:30 RED CARD FOR MATIC Off goes Chelsea’s Matic for shoving Barnes after a tackle. Updated at 4.52pm GMT 4.29pm GMT16:29 One thing about that Augsburg result. Marvin Hitz scored an injury-time equaliser for Augsburg. So what, you say, nothing unusual there, last-minute equalisers are scored every week. Except, not by goalkeepers! 4.26pm GMT16:26 FT: Paderborn-Bayern 0-6, Mainz-Frankfurt 3-1, Augsburg-Leverkusen 2-2, Schalke-Bremen 1-1, Freiburg-Hoffenheim 1-1 lots of draws 4.25pm GMT16:25 Lewis Grabban has stepped up to the spot and given Norwich the lead against Watford. Given how poorly the other top Championship sides are doing around them, that could be one very important goal for the Canaries. 4.23pm GMT16:23 Colchester can really feel Bristol City breathing down their necks now after Aden Flint made it 3-2. That goal came via a header after a decent ball from Korey Smith. 4.20pm GMT16:20 Instead of just hacking the ball clear, Derby doddle around the back and they are made to pay for it by Will Keane. His right-footed effort from a bit out restores Sheffield Wednesday’s lead. In that same league, Brighton will take three important points if they can hold on against Birmingham. They are currently 2-1 up. And when I say 2-1 I, of course, mean 3-1. Updated at 4.21pm GMT 4.16pm GMT16:16 Bayern now need just two more goals to make it 8-0 two weeks in a row after Robben made it 6-0. Back in the Premier League, Ozil and Sanchez combined and almost added another to Arsenal’s tally for the day. 4.14pm GMT16:14 Speaking of League One. Bristol City have a lot of work to do but they, at least, have given themselves some hope of getting something from this game against Colchester. That has come via James Tavernier who has belted one in from about 45 yards out. It’s 3-1 to Colchester. 4.11pm GMT16:11 Meanwhile in east London: Bloody marvellous first half performance from Orient. That's more like it! #lofc Orient fan shouts "Sit down you Northern wanker". *keeps head down* #lofc 4.10pm GMT16:10 The praise offered to Sheffield United before their game with Coventry has obviously gone to their heads. They are now 2-0 down. Over in the Championship, Derby have levelled proceedings via a Jake Buxton header. 4.07pm GMT16:07 Aberdeen have increased their lead against St Mirren and once more it comes through Rooney. Bayern have increased their lead too thanks to Ribéry and Weiser. 5-0 it is. They couldn’t make it 8-0 two weeks in a row, could they? 4.04pm GMT16:04 And we are back. No goals to tell you about just yet. 4.02pm GMT16:02 In the midst of all the first-half action, there was no chance to tell you that José Mourinho was positively foaming at the mouth on the sideline at Stamford Bridge. And with good reason. His side were denied what looked like two clear-cut penalties which would have helped put that game to bed and allowed him to rest a few big players. Updated at 4.04pm GMT 3.57pm GMT15:57 It was 2-0 to Bayern Munich. It is now 3-0 to Bayern Munich. The latest comes from the spot and the foot of Arjen Robben. Paderborn are now down to 10-men after Florian Hartherz saw red so that really is game over. That goal, incidentally, means Robben has now scored against every side in the Bundesliga. Updated at 3.59pm GMT 3.51pm GMT15:51 Bournemouth were back in the game. They are now back out of it, after Boruc punched one into his own net. Ipswich and Derby are still losing too but Wolves, who are now of the promotion game just yet, are two up against Rotherham. All your half-time scores can be found here. Updated at 3.52pm GMT 3.48pm GMT15:48 “I’d love to know what twitter user Joey Barton thinks of football player Joey Barton’s card collecting disciplinary record,” honks David Flynn. You are probably not the only one. 3.47pm GMT15:47 GOAL! Crystal Palace 0-2 Arsenal (Giroud) Cazorla to Welbeck. Welbeck shoots. Speroni spills. Giroud poaches it home. Updated at 4.15pm GMT 3.46pm GMT15:46 GOAL! Aston Villa 1-1 Stoke (Diouf) Ireland sends the ball across the box and Diouf rises above the rest to make it 1-1. Updated at 4.02pm GMT 3.44pm GMT15:44 In the Championship, Bournemouth have dragged themselves back into the game via a close range effort from Marc Pugh. Blackpool have also done the same against Blackburn. Over in Watford, the two sides are cancelling themselves out. 3.40pm GMT15:40 GOAL! Hull 1-1 QPR (Austin) Well QPR cannot rely on Barton but they can rely on the goals of Charlie Austin. A great cross from Phillips finds the head of Austin at the near post and he heads his side back into the game. Updated at 4.02pm GMT 3.39pm GMT15:39 But he is not that type of player. 8 - Joey Barton has been shown a card in each of his last eight PL appearances (7 yellows, one red). Anger. 3.38pm GMT15:38 Some interesting stuff going on down in League Two. Tranmere are two – two! – goals ahead in their game against Shrewsbury and Burton are drawing 0-0 with Dagenham & Redbridge. If the scores stay the same, Dagenham will move to the top of the table. Thid place Wycombe are leading against Carlisle through Aaron Pierre. 3.33pm GMT15:33 RED CARD FOR QPR! Off goes Joey Barton after getting involved in a melee and hitting out at Huddlestone (where it hurts!) right in front of the referee. Silly stuff from the QPR captain. Updated at 4.03pm GMT 3.31pm GMT15:31 GOAL! Swansea 1-1 Manchester United (Ki) ... Shelvey whips the ball to the front post and Ki nips in ahead of the rest to pull his side level from about 10 yards out. Updated at 3.55pm GMT 3.30pm GMT15:30 GOAL! Swansea 0-1 Manchester United (Herrera) Some very nice buildup play from an up-front Rooney leads to Herrera hammering the ball into the bottom corner of the net. But that lead doesn’t last long ... Updated at 3.53pm GMT 3.28pm GMT15:28 What on Earth is happening at Brisbane Road? Orient are now 2-0 up! And what on Earth is happening at Weston Homes Community Stadium, Colchester, Essex CO4 5UP? Colchester are now 3-0 up! Against Bristol City! 3.25pm GMT15:25 Another top championship team is 1-0 down. This time it is Derby. North of the border, the excellent Adam Rooney has scored yet again to give Aberdeen the lead over St Mirren. 3.23pm GMT15:23 Meanwhile in south London: Brilliant banner at Selhurst Park. pic.twitter.com/3ho0nrkfBM 3.21pm GMT15:21 GOAL! Aston Villa 1-0 Stoke (Sinclair) The Sherwood effect/affect. A fast paced cross from Delph found it way into the box and all Sinclair had to do was jump and glance his side into the lead. Easy peasy. 2012 - Scott Sinclair has scored his first Premier League goal since August 2012, when he scored for Swansea against QPR. Overdue. Aston Villa have scored as many league goals (1) in 20 mins under Tim Sherwood as they had in the rest of 2015 combined (540 mins of action) Updated at 3.46pm GMT 3.19pm GMT15:19 “Just so everyone knows I have decided to stick with my Baggies,” says J.R. in Illinois. “And we had some CONtroversy (or conTROversy as you all say) in the 5th minute! Graham was through and Lescott took him down. Sunderland want a red card but Mike Jones only gives a yellow. Correct call for me. Graham never had the ball and was never going to reach it. Foster had it in his hands by the time Lescott fouled Graham. Cattermole was fuming if you can imagine that. As for shoveling, we’ve got 6 inches of snow and it’s still coming down. I’ll get to it later.” 3.18pm GMT15:18 GOAL! Hull 1-0 QPR (Jelavic) A long, fairly aimless ball is launched long towards the QPR box. Caulker tried to clear it but his effort was ver, very poor as all it did was find the volley of Jelavic who has given his side the lead. Updated at 3.39pm GMT 3.16pm GMT15:16 Over in the Championship. Ipswich are down 1-0 and Bournemouth are down 1-0. Over in League two. Holy moly! Colchester are two up against Bristol City. 3.15pm GMT15:15 GOAL! Chelsea 1-0 Burnley (Ivanovic) Hazard twinkle-toes his way past a few Burnley players before cutting it back to the front post and finding Ivanovic who puts his side into the lead. Updated at 3.33pm GMT 3.12pm GMT15:12 Lewandowski got the first for Bayern and Lewandowski has got the second, this time after some good work from Ribéry. That seems like game over already. Elsewhere, there has been a big goal in Barcelona but it hasn’t gone to the home side: 7' Goal Málaga! FCB 0 - 1 MAL #FCBlive Updated at 3.12pm GMT 3.09pm GMT15:09 GOAL! Crystal Palace 0-1 Arsenal (Cazorla) ... and he rolls the ball into the bottom corner of the net sending Speroni the wrong way Updated at 3.25pm GMT 3.08pm GMT15:08 Penalty to Arsenal! Danny Welbeck goes down in the box after a foul by Souare and Clattenburg points to the spot. Up steps Cazorla ... Updated at 3.13pm GMT 3.07pm GMT15:07 My, oh my. What a start for Colchester. They have gone 1-0 against League One leaders, Bristol City, thanks to a Tom Lapslie header. Continuing the theme of League One upsets, Andrea Dossena (remember him?) has given Orient the lead against Oldham. Back in the Premier League, Swansea have had an effort cleared of the line against Manchester United. 3.04pm GMT15:04 By all accounts, Villa have got off to a fast-paced start against Stoke with the fans very vocal in their support for the side, which hasn’t always been the case this season. Elsewhere, Burnley have Chelsea under some early pressure. Updated at 3.20pm GMT 3.02pm GMT15:02 It is all over in the Exeter v Plymouth game. Plymouth, it was, who won, thanks to that Reid hat-trick. Updated at 3.12pm GMT 3.01pm GMT15:01 Banner at Chelsea: "Black or white we are all blue" Updated at 3.08pm GMT 3.00pm GMT15:00 With some well-timed peeps on the whistles, it is off we go around the grounds and around the country. “As a suggestion,” suggests Matt Dony, “it’s not much help for JR in Illinois, but I’m just about to go and watch St Clears v Laugharne in the oval-ball chasing world. Great atmosphere, pig roast, and so close to my house that the ground shares a fence with my garden. It’d be rude not to.” Updated at 3.01pm GMT 2.56pm GMT14:56 Well that Paderborn resistance didn’t last long. Lewandowski broke the offside trap, after a delicious flick from Robben, and slipped his side into the lead. Why wasn’t Lewandowski playing against Shakhtar? Seemed silly to be living him out. 2.50pm GMT14:50 Paderborn obviously watched the Champions League on Tuesday. Not giving @FCBayern any space at the moment. #SCPFCB Did anyone else watch that game? Bayern were awful to watch. 2.49pm GMT14:49 “JR in Illinois should try to find a stream of the SPFL game of the day at Tannadice, a Tayside Derby between Dundee United and St. Johnstone” reckons Simon McMahon. “Bright, sunny day here, with goals and drama aplenty guaranteed.*” *not guaranteed Updated at 2.52pm GMT 2.48pm GMT14:48 “J.R can clear the snow from in front of his house and be a good American!” suggests Clive Darwell. 2.47pm GMT14:47 As you expect, Bayern are dominating the ball in the early stages of their game against Paderborn but they are yet to find the back of the net. Elsewhere in the Bundesliga, Josip Drmic has given Leverkusen the lead against Augsburg. 2.39pm GMT14:39 Plymouth are down to ten men now but they are up by two goals. It’s Exeter 1-3 Plymouth. It was Reid got the first two and it is Reid who has the third, though he has since hobbled off injured. 2.35pm GMT14:35 “Hey Ian,” cheers J.R. in Illinois. “Is it me or are the matches in the Premier League this week particularly uninspiring? As usual I can’t decide which game to watch. They always have one game on TV, and that is Chelsea-Burnley today. All the other games are available online so I watch another on my computer. I’m leaning toward Sunderland-West Brom because I sort of kind of follow the Baggies. For some reason I feel may want to watch Hull-QPR but have no idea why. Also considering watching Tactic Tim’s debut at Villa Park. Or I guess I could forgo the Premier League and watch Barcelona-Malaga instead. Then again I will be able to watch any of these games later whenever I want. Hmmmm. I would take any suggestions under advisement.” Can anyone help J.R. in Illinois? Or can anyone suggest other activities for him? Something Illinois based would be handy. 2.31pm GMT14:31 Off they go in the Bundesliga. Incidentally, last night, Borussia Dortmund beat Stuttgart thanks to Marco Reus in a five-goal thriller. You can read the match report here. Updated at 2.44pm GMT 2.24pm GMT14:24 Danny Marsh has been in touch with his thoughts on Tim Sherwood ahead of Tim’s first game in charge of Villa today. Says Danny: I never liked Tim at Spurs because I’ve never liked Spurs. Based on very little apart from a cousin’s friend being mean to me when I was six. He was a Spurs fan. I should let it go, really. Anyway, there is excitement in the air at Villa for the first time in a very long while. I do think that Sherwood was a great choice based on what he has said already. I know he’ll go out to attack and score goals and he has sounded much more passionate this past week than Lambert ever did. I never felt any confidence in him. So, yes, go Tim! 2.22pm GMT14:22 There has been another goal in the early game between Exeter and Plymouth. Alessandawas brought down in the box by Oakley and the referee had little doubt in his mind when he pointed to the spot. Reuben Reid stepped up and scored his second of the game. Leeds won that game, by the way. 2.15pm GMT14:15 Premier League team news Aston Villa v Stoke City Aston Villa: Guzan; Hutton, Vlaar, Clark, Richardson; Sinclair, Sanchez, Delph, Gil; Agbonlahor, Benteke. Subs: Given, Westwood, Cissokho, Weimann, Cleverley, Bacuna, Okore. Stoke City: Begovic; Bardsley, Wollscheid, Wilson, Pieters; Nzonzi, Whelan; Walters, Ireland, Moses; Diouf. Subs: Butland; Teixeira, Adam, Shenton, Sidwell, Arnautovic, Crouch. Referee: Roger East Fun fact: Tim Sherwood won 59% of his league games in charge of Tottenham – a higher ratio than any other Spurs manager in the competition. Take that Juande Ramos! Crystal Palace v Arsenal Crystal Palace: Speroni, Ward, Delaney, Dann, Souare, Mutch, Ledley, Puncheon, Zaha, Gayle, Campbell. Subs: Hennessey, Hangeland, Kelly, Jedinak, Bolasie, Ameobi, Murray. Arsenal: Ospina, Chambers, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal, Coquelin, Cazorla, Welbeck, Ozil, Alexis, Giroud. Subs: Szczesny, Gibbs, Bellerin, Gabriel, Wilshere, Rosicky, Walcott. Referee: Mark Clattenburg Fun fact: Arsenal have won just one of 12 league games after falling behind this season and that was against ... dah! dah! daaaaah! Crystal Palace Chelsea v Burnley Chelsea: Courtois; Ivanovic, Zouma, Terry, Filipe Luis; Matic, Fabregas; Cuadrado, Oscar, Hazard; Diego Costa. Subs: Cech, Azpilicueta, Cahill, Ramires, Willian, Drogba, Remy Burnley: Heaton; Trippier, Shackell, Keane, Mee; Boyd, Jones, Arfield, Kightly; Barnes, Ings. Subs: Gilks, Duff, Wallace, Vokes, Reid, Jutkiewicz, Ward. Referee: Martin Atkinson Fun fact: Burnley have won just two of their 31 league away games (W2 D5 L24) and kept just one clean sheet in those matches Hull v QPR Hull: McGregor, Dawson, Bruce, McShane, Elmohamady, Brady, Huddlestone, Livermore, Meyler, Jelavić, N’Doye. Subs: Harper, Davies, Robertson, Quinn, Ramírez, Hernández, Aluko QPR: Green, Furlog, Caulker, Ferdinand, Suk-Young, phillips, Barton, Henry, Kranjcar, Austin, Zamora. Subs: McCarthy, Hill, Traore, Wright-Phillips, Vargas, Zarate, Doughty. Referee: Anthony Taylor Fun fact: In the 44 meetings in all competitions between these two sides, there have been 15 draws, 15 QPR wins and 14 Hull wins. Hence why those of us with diagnosed or undiagnosed OCD are praying for a Hull win. Sunderland v West Bromwich Albion Sunderland: Pantilimon, Vergini, Reveillere, O’Shea, Brown, Cattermole, Larsson, Johnson, Alvarez, Graham, Defoe. Subs: Van Aanholt, Bridcutt, Fletcher, Wickham, Gomez, Coates, Mannone. West Bromwich Albion: Foster, Dawson, McAuley, Lescott, Brunt, Morrison, Fletcher, Yacob, Gardner, Ideye, Berahino. Subs: Myhill, Wisdom, Olsson, Baird, Mulumbu, Sessegnon, McManaman. Referee: Mike Jones Fun fact: West Brom have collected more wins against Sunderland than any other opponent in Premier League history. Wow! Swansea v Manchester United Swansea: Fabianski; Naughton, Fernandez, Williams, Taylor; Cork, Shelvey, Ki, Sigurdsson, Routledge; Gomis. Subs: Tremmel, Rangel, Amat, Britton, Montero, Emnes, Oliveira. Manchester United: De Gea; McNair, Jones, Rojo, Shaw; Blind, Fellaini, Herrera, Di Maria; Rooney, Van Persie. Subs: Valdes, Smalling, Januzaj, Mata, Valencia, Young, Falcao. Referee: Neil Swarbrick Fun fact: Manchester United have lost a mere one of their last 15 league matches and in that run, they have picked up more points than any other team in the top flight. Tell the haters to stick that stat up their jumper, Louis! 1.58pm GMT13:58 Luis Enrique does not seem too worried about the impeding Champions League tie against Manchester City. He has started a fairly strong side for the game against Málaga. XI del Barcelona: Bravo; Alves, Pique,Mathieu, Alba; Busquets, Iniesta, Rafinha; Messi, Neymar, Suárez. 1.55pm GMT13:55 A low cross from Jordan Moore-Taylor has been turned into the net by Arron Davies. It’s Exeter 1-1 Plymouth and it’s half-time. Meanwhile, Leeds are putting in one of the best defensive performances this season against Middlesborough and thus still holding onto to their 1-0 lead. Eight minutes to go. Nick Ames etc. Updated at 1.56pm GMT 1.49pm GMT13:49 This is from the Chelsea programme today: John Terry on Chelsea's stand against discrimination in match programme pic.twitter.com/eDz0AT1PPC 1.45pm GMT13:45 A couple of early goals for you. Thanks to Reuben Reid, Plymouth are one to the good against Exeter. Elsewhere, Leeds are still leading 1-0 against Middlesborough. It’s a cracking game and Nick Ames is typing his way his way through it so you don’t have to. 1.30pm GMT13:30 It’s back baby. The Big One. Cancel those plans to go shopping for the dress you need for the summer wedding, it’s yonks away anyway. Put away the tool box, that plug can wait till another day and sure it’s not like the kids are going to put their fingers in it again, are they? Put the kettle on, heat the cafetiere (with the freshly boiled water) for one minute, pour out the water, add two teaspoons of ground coffee, add the rest of the water from the kettle, give it two good stirs with a wooden spoon, let it infuse for four minutes, push the plunger with the palm of your hand and pour the coffee. Add the crisps to the bowl and don’t let the Wine Gums stray too far. Swing the feet from floor to the table, recline, let out that sigh that signals relaxation and, hey presto!, you are ready to go for what promises to be an action-packed afternoon of football in the Premier League. Excited? You should be. But it is not just in the Premier League in which the action is afoot. Top of the Championship’s Middlesbrough are already underway against Leeds United and you can join Nick Ames for the latest on that one by clicking on the hyperlink inserted in the word here. Second side’s Bournemouth are facing a tricky away trip to Brentford, who are unbeaten in the last six games at Griffin Park in all competitions. Fellow promotion hopefuls, Derby, are at home to Sheffield Wednesday. A win for Steve McClaren’s side would be a real kick in the pants for Wednesday’s hopes of returning to the Premier League next season. “Nobody gives us a chance at Derby,” reckons Stuart Gray, “so we go there as the underdogs.” He has a point. Over their last 10 league games, Derby have lost just once. There is also a tasty affair between Norwich and Watford as well as a (sorta) six-pointer and (sorta) derby between Millwall and Fulham. Below them in League One, the division’s in form side is, Gillingham, of course. They have a fairly impressive 16 points from their last six games (the only blip being a draw with Walsall) and they have an away game against Yeovil this afternoon. Yeovil’s fellow strugglers, Leyton Orient are at home to Oldham and given their abysmal record at Brisbane Road this season (15 games, 9 points, two wins) you would expect Oldham to return home with a smile on their faces and very possibly a place in the promotion spots, depending on other results, of course. Speaking of promotion. Sheffield United. It’s three wins on the trot now. “We are still not giving up on the top two, but also we are not even assured of a top-six place yet,” worried Nigel Clough. Today they are facing a lowly Coventry who haven’t won in six games. It should be four. At the very top, Bristol City are going to beat Colchester 2-0, MK Dons are going to have to battle hard to beat Peterborough 1-0 and Swindon have a decent chance to reclaim their good form against Crawley. And so to League Two. Bury could do their chances of moving on up and moving on out when they come up against bottom side Hartlepool. It’s not looking good for the Pools. They may have a game in hand on Cheltenham (who drew 1-1 with Accrington last night) but they are seven points adrift and Scott Fenwick’s ankle ain’t looking good since the whack he took against Tranmere. Speaking of Tranmere, they are welcoming top dogs Shrewsbury to Prenton Park today. “Tranmere have got a lot to fight for as well,” puffed Micky Mellon, “so at this stage of the season these games are always going to be tight and we’ve got to be prepared to roll up our sleeves and fight.” Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink’s Burton, meanwhile, travel to Dagenham and should they better the result of Shrewsbury, t’will be them puffing out their chests and calling themselves the top dogs. Either way, you would expect both sides to be spraying the celebratory champagne come season’s end. As for beyond these borders. Aberdeen can go joint top if they beat St Mirren. Bayern Munich have an intriguing encounter with Paderborn. Barcelona are up against Málaga. And Paris St Germain take on Toulouse. Excited? You should be. |