HERE ENDETH SEASON 2009 - 2010

MANCHESTER UTD 4 STOKE CITY FC 0

Edwin van der Sar had three saves to make.The first from Ricardo Fuller's sharp strike just before the break.The other two bringing out the best in him during the second half.First he clawed away diving Rory Delap's looping header from the near post,as it headed toward the top right corner of the net.Then he just managed to paw away Danny Pugh's curling shot from the right,when it seemed destined for the top left corner of his net.

United managed two goals in each half in their ultimately forlorn chase to retain the title.Begovic could have done better with Giggs side foot effort for the second.Otherwise he had a sound game.Stoke were undone for the first goal as the ball richocheted from player to player as if on a pinball table.Unfortunately it ended with Fletcher,almost on the goal line,an unmissable opportunity.Ten minutes into the second half another close in scramble saw Danny Higginbotham slice the ball into his own net as he attempted to clear.The fourth goal came from a cross from the left which found Park,unmarked on the right.He made no mistake with the finish.

We were not expecting to get much from this game,and we didn't.Unlike at Chelsea though we did not fold entirely.

The end of an excellent season then.With Blackburn sneaking a one goal win at Villa we drop to 11th in the table,respectable indeed.Roll on August 14th.......

OFFICIAL....STOKE CITY PASS LAST SEASON'S POINTS TALLY

                                                                                                                                       (SKY Sports)
This was an altogether happier visit to the capital for The Potters.Ten days after the Chelsea nightmare,we emerged from Craven Cottage with all three points.

Tony Pulis fielded the same side as on Saturday.We were never really at the races in attacking terms,but defended in determined fashion with two fine saves from Begovic helping keep the first half scoreless.

Stoke showed more going forward in the second half with Etherington looking dangerous.One fine cross from the left evaded both Sidibe and Fuller,with only a touch being required to convert.

In the 83rd minute Fuller broke loose down the right.Konchelsky went with him but lost his footing as the Jamaican turned sharp left.Fuller lobbed the ball further into the box,Tuncay made some sort of contact - Roy Hodgson was of the mind that he handled - attempting to shoot,the all squirted left to Matty Etherington who volleyed home majestically off the inside of the left goalpost.



Stoke saw off the mounting Fulham pressure to record the fourth away win of an excellent season,surpassing last season's points tally,and moving into the top half of the Premiership table.

Now for the Premiership decider on Sunday at Man U.....will it be in our hands?

MATCH BALL DISAPPEARS INTO CROWD - WATCH EBAY - CHECK THE SELLER LOCATION

STOKE CITY FC 0 EVERTON 0

This was not a bore draw, far from it.Both sides played some good football.Stoke had to clear their heads after last week's hammering - they did that! Everton continued their excellent run,undefeated in 10 games I think it is - they did that.

Chances were few and far between. Everton had the ball in the net , a header from Jagielka,but this was rightly chalked off, for Anichebe's offside/in some way obstructing keeper Begovic. This was balanced up by Rory Delap's glaring miss when faced with an open goal at the other end.

Stoke had three real chances to my mind,all coming in the second half.For the first Sidibe,who had a brilliant game yesterday, took the ball down the left,played a super ball to Etherington,moving fast down the  centre.His measured ball to his right put Rory Delap free on goal.With just Howard to beat - the keeper was already into a full length dive to his left - our midfielder inexplicable turned his shot outside the righthand post.

The second saw Ricardo Fuller blast the ball over the bar from the edge of the penalty area.The third featured two of the three subs, all of whom joined the fray with three minutes to go. Again the move started down the left. A perceptive pass by Tuncay set Pugh clear of the Everton defence.He reached the byline and had only to cut the ball back to Lawrence,unmarked in front of goal.Looked easy to do, and a goal for certain given Liam's accomplished finish against Hull.Sadly Pugh fluffed his pass,and it was not to be.

Stoke were up for this one.The backline,changed from last week, looked solid with Shawcross and Huth paired in the centre, Higginbotham reverting to left back ( a big improvement on Collins), and Wilkinson adding bite on the left side.

Mama earned his Man of the Match award.Ricardo gave everything,and eventually was afforded some protection from constant over physical buffeting by Ref Howard Webb.Begovic,for the most part looked assured.

So ends a very enjoyable - well most of the time anyway - home season. Oh, that match ball....it disappeared into the Everton fans.........

POTTERS POLEAXED AT THE BRIDGE

CHELSEA 7 STOKE CITY FC 0

S. Kalou 24

S. Kalou 31

F. Lampard 44

S. Kalou 68

F. Lampard 81

D. Sturridge 87

F. Malouda 90

Not a lot that I feel like writing after witnessing this game.We were in it for the first 20 minutes or so, with Ric Fuller posing a little bit of a threat.Chelsea had a fair amount of luck,but for the most part they made it for themselves.

The Stoke team that featured in the FA Cup quarter final, putting up a half decent show,went missing today in the face of the Chelsea onslaught.

Stoke boss Tony Pulis:
"Chelsea were very good but we turned up and one or two were complacent, we've got to be 100% to compete in this company and we weren't.
"They were far the better team, we were lucky to get nil. We had our pants pulled down and our backsides slapped.
"The team means 11 players having a go not five or six, we were poor we didn't make it very difficult for them."

Nuff said....where's the red wine?

"SOMETIMES YOU NEED A BIT OF LUCK...."

STOKE CITY FC 1 BOLTON WANDERERS 2

......."most probably Owen (Coyle) hasn't had much going for him lately.....certainly got some today!" So said Tony Pulis in his after match comments, I agree with his view totally.Be in no doubt apart from a ten minute spell Stoke completely bossed this game,yet in the end lost it.

Its all about goals.The visitors had not won for three or four matches,and for most of this one they never looked like scoring.Indeed they were woeful in the first half, heads dropping when Dave Kitson put us in front in the 13th minute.By halftime we ought to have been out of sight,yet were only the one goal to the good.

Headers narrowly over the bar, posts struck,clear and sometimes easy chances missed as we went for the second goal in the second half.To be fair Bolton improved ,clearly an unhappy Mr Coyle had had plenty to say to them during the break. Jussi Jaaskelainen denied Whitehead,just getting his fingertips to the midfielders lobbed effort as it headed for the open net,sufficient in fact to slow its progress for a defender to clear.Tuncay unmarked put a lovely ball from Etherington against the post from close range when the open goal seemed an easier target.

Bolton's purple patch was initiated by Ref Attwell.He judged, seriously belatedly (so much so that Stoke broke a good third the length of the pitch before he blew....think the Bolton players made the decision for him !) that Whitehead had felled Weiss centrally on the edge of the box.More than a little dubious.Taylor scored from the free kick( 85 min),the low strike taking a deflection of Ricardo Fuller,to see it on its way into the Stoke net.

The Bolton players celebrated, as you would scoring your first goal for 7 hours, but not a quarter as much as when Taylor grabbed a second,directing the ball into the Stoke net from close in from Weiss's excellent cross.

Stoke still had chances to salvage a point from a game they should never have lost,the best chance falling to Abdy Faye who skied  the ball over an empty net from 4 yards out.

When its not your day its not your day.......Bolton, like Stoke, look to be safe.......Dick Turpin would have been proud of them today!

HONOURS EVEN IN DERBY MATCH

WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS 0 STOKE CITY FC 0

Beautiful sunny day with a bit of a breeze for this early start at Molineux. Stokies in shirtsleeves...must be summer. First half pretty much even with neither side seriously threatening to score.Plenty of Rory Delap throws ,with a good proportion being fielded by Hahneman without too much trouble.

The second half carried on pretty much as the first had done,probing both ways but nothing really incisive.Wolves played route one,particularly after Uwelumo came on.Wolves matching Rory's throws with long throws of their own.Two chances of note.Two minutes from time Foley sent a sharp shot narrowly to the right of the Stoke goal.On target and Sorensen was beaten.Similarly at the other end Whelan's shot from the edge of the box whistled inches over Hahnemann's crossbar,with the keeper only able to watch it go.

Another point in the bag then,and another clean sheet for The Mighty Potters .Wolves themselves look to be OK if they can maintain this form.

Stoke  Sorensen,Higginbotham,Huth,Collins,Faye,Whelan,Whitehead,Delap,Etherington,Sidibe,Kitson.

RED HOT RICARDO

STOKE CITY FC 2 HULL CITY 0

Stoke passed the magical 40 point mark yesterday,and were excellent value for the win that all but guarantees a third season in the top division.To be honest Hull offered very little real threat throughout the game,and considering their position in the league seemed to lack ambition.A point seemed to be their aim,and apart from one brief attacking flurry in the home penalty area midway through the second half they seldom looked like getting it after Fuller's early strike.

We had to wait just six minutes for the Jamaican flier to open the scoring.A fine flick on from Dave Kitson- who incidentally won all the early aerial exchanges - was allowed to drop by defender McShane.In a flash Fuller was away and past him,finishing with a beautiful shot with the outside of his right boot over advancing keeper Myhill into the net.In a vain attempt to get to the ball McShane clipped Fuller's heel,the resultant injury taking the striker out of the game at halftime,and reducing his effectiveness for the remainder of the first half.

With Tuncay on for Fuller Stoke continued to press for a second goal.It duly arrived after the visitors went down to ten men,when Boateng was stretchered off with a facial injury received totally accidentally as Tuncay attempted an overhead kick.Ian Dowie had already made his three substitutions.

On 90 minutes Sidibe, on for Kitson,got his head to a long ball,directing it to Tuncay on the edge of the Hull penalty box.He squared the ball to Etherington.Having brought the ball under control he rolled a beautifully weighted diagonal ball to Lawrence,free to his right.Lawrence did not panic,his shot - more of a pass really - went along the ground,straight as a die into the corner of the Hull net.Funnily enough this was his first goal since the Hull away win last season,which itself guaranteed our safety!Superb football from The Potters,another quality goal.

Eight minutes of added on time were played out uneventfully.Three points then from a workmanlike performance,which had more than a few moments of high quality football from The Potters.Kitson again had a fine game,getting about the pitch,winning balls in the air and on the ground,making telling passes to set coleagues free on a number of occasions.His partnership with Fuller,certainly on today's evidence,looks to have real potential.Will he be leaving us at the end of the season...maybe not...Etherington continues to impress...another fine game from him!

RICARDO FULLER STEALS THE SHOW

WEST HAM UNITED 0 STOKE CITY FC 1

Stoke are now within one point of their safety target thanks to Ricardo Fuller.The match looked odds on for a noscore draw until he popped up with an individual piece of magic.

The team Tony Pulis put out was a patched up affair, but still well able to cope with a star studded Hammers outfit.Suspended Dean Whitehead was replaced by Liam Lawrence.Three squad players had been affected by a stomach bug.Defender Davies did not travel with the team to east London.Although affected Etherington lasted 67 minutes against his former teammates.The other player was Fuller himself,who was considered fit for the bench.Mama Sidibe took his place in the starting lineup.

Further enforced changes saw Abdy Faye replaced by Wilkinson  part way through the first half, and Dave Kitson by Tuncay within a minute or so of the restart.

The first half did not produce many chances,Faye heading wide for Stoke, Mido making a complete mess of an opportunity from a rebound,when he only had Sorensen to beat from six yards out.

The second half meandered along in pretty much the same fashion,neither side looking likely to land a knockout punch, until Fuller came on for Etherington in the 67th minute.

Within two minutes he had transformed the game.We can all remember his mazey (?) run against Villa,beating several defenders,looking likely to score the winner,but at the last moment scuffing his shot.

Today he delivered.A poor West Ham throw in was intercepted by Danny Collins,who lobbed a hopeful ball forward in Fuller's direction.The Jamaican was first to the ball, brought it under control,back to goal,turned,skinned defender da Costa,turned England man Upson inside out,then,imperiously,placed the ball past exposed England keeper Green into the net.

Loved his understated celebration,and as MOTD pundits concurred,a fine goal,good enough to win any match.....and so it did this one! Bar one or two minor scares Stoke comfortably saw out the remaining time.

ICELAND (AND MIKE DEAN) REVISITS......

STOKE CITY FC 1  TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 2

This drama had two stars the first,the 'Guddy'  Icelandic international striker Eidur Gudjohnsen,the second ,the baddy, referee Mike Dean,  who clearly sees himself as a man with as important a part to play as the footballers in the cast! His theatrical posturings would confirm this view for anyone watching yesterday's inept performance.

The first act saw Stoke's artisans holding their more expensive - if not illustrious - visitors. A booking for Ricardo Fuller provided early concern,but he settled down to give a solid performance,which even included a spot of peacemaking in a spat between two visiting players.A booking for Dean Whitehead for a challenge on Modric was deserved ,and was to have more serious consequences.

The second act started sluggishly for our team,but the 'stars' were quickly into their stride.On 46 minutes Gudjohnsen,an early replacement for Pavlyuchenko, made his first mark.A shortish ball over the top from Crouch dropped to him.He was able to hold off Abdy Faye's challenge to rifle the ball into the net above Sorensen,whom it might be said went to ground a tad early. 

Enter stage left Mike Dean.This opener was followed almost immediately by the ref's show stopper.He judged a clumsy coming together between Whitehead and Modric to be a yellow card thus sending off offence.A mighty over reaction,an exceedingly poor decision,which arguably ensured Stoke would get nothing from the match.He could not get his cards out fast enough, to wave them with a Shakespearean flourish, reminiscent of his performances at Hull sending off Abdy Faye,and Andy Wilkinson at Portsmouth.

After a short period of Spurs pressure Stoke forced their way back into contention.The excellent Etherington floated in a ball from the left, Bassong decked Man of the Match  Kitson. Etherington netted the resultant penalty with aplomb (64 mins),Gomes diving left the shot going to the right.

The 10 men could even have gone ahead.Ricardo provided a tragi-comic moment, as,from a mishit shot, the ball reached him to the left of and close to goal.Sadly with every chance to score he skied his effort.Maybe its the haircut!

On 77 minutes an incisive move by Spurs provided the clincher.Assou Ekotto moved swiftly down the left,outpacing Huth.He cut the ball across the penalty area, Gudjohnsen dummied,the ball running on to the incoming Kranjcar who struck a powerful unstopable shot into the Stoke net.

To their credit Stoke never gave up.We even had a final golden opportunity to equalise,but with the net at his mercy sub Mama Sidibe lost his footing and embarassingly fell over instead of scoring.Such is life!

From their onfield celebrations you could see how much this result meant to Spurs, how relieved they were was obvious.Stoke's pressure at the end of the game had revealed a serious nervousness which with the extra man on the pitch I am sure we could have exploited.

So we are still in search of those few points to guarantee safety for another season.....

WINDY VILLA ....WINDY CITY....

Well he's said it in the media, and he underlined his thoughts with his team selection yesterday.Martin O'Neill is a genuine guy,a very astute manager,and for my money a man to be listened to.In recent times,and again this week, he has been fulsome in his praise of the progress Stoke City  have made in a very short space of time in the Prem, and the sterling qualities that our management team and squad display.

His team selection reflected this yesterday.Both Carew and Heskey on for virtually the whole of the match.

The conditions,strong winds -Villa had the advantage in the first half,Stoke in the second -  were not conducive to good football,but a good football match is what we got between two extremely competitive teams.Take no notice of Gary Lineker's comment at the end of MOTD,that reducing the highlights to just five minutes didn't make the game seem any better.Rubbish!!No goals yes,as the two sides cancelled each other out,but a fine game of football nonetheless.

Plenty of half chances,with Stoke's best falling to Huth.In the 92nd minute he headed narrowly over from a cross from the left......something MOTD editors chose not to show presumably because it would not fit in with their 'forgetable game' narrative.

Starting with Sidibe and Tuncay up front,Stoke did not really come alive ,until the second half when they were replaced with Fuller and Kitson.On this occasion Tuncay took the change with bad grace,seemingly heading off to the tunnel directly,then WISELY coming back to wish Fuller well ,before shunning the manager  as he headed for the dressing room UNWISELY.Shame really because he's been looking good lately,but today Pulis was right,the Turk was looking ineffective against Villa's uncompromising defending, well marshalled by Dunne and Collins.

Rory Delap had an excellent game,don't think I've ever seen so many long throws in one game,but Villa coped as well as any team has with the threat that they presented.Glen Whelan just continues to get better.Yesterday,in addition to his normal attributes,he picked out some lovely passes,one beauty dropping in over Fuller's head to give the striker a chance on goal.Fuller has reputedly been ill..you would not have known it as he repeatedly tied Villa defenders (and himself twice) in knots.He was ably assisted by Dave Kitson,mentioned by name by the manager in his post match interview.You wouldn't be surprised to see Kitson get on from the start in the near future.

Whatever defensive combination Tony Pulis puts out we seem to be pretty solid.Good to see that Danny Collins has found a bit more form.Ryan Shawcross will no doubt be back against Spurs but that can be no reflection on the performances our players put in yesterday.

Matty Etherington again played the full 93 minutes,doing very well as he strives to get back to his pre-injury form.

So still 11th, edging closer to safety,and with a full week to get ready for Spurs,and another chance to test ourselves against a team chasing the fourth European Cup place.

Gary L ...... for those of us in the sell out crowd the match proved to be excellent ENTERTAINMENT!!

SHARE OF THE SPOILS

BURNLEY 1 STOKE CITY FC 

It was good to see Etherington back for his first start since the injury at Man City in the FA Cup.Together with Lawrence he added attacking threat for the Potters.Stoke had the best of a poor first half going in one goal up thanks to Tuncay and Rory Delap. The inevitable long throw from the left was headed on by Sidibe ,for Tuncay to head past Jensen from 5 yards. Tuncay’s fifth goal of the season….he must be close to being our leading scorer.

The second half started with Burnley looking much livelier. On 52 minutes ex -stokie Patterson lost his marker swivelled ,crossing the ball in from the right side of the box for  Nugent under challenge from Huth to head past Sorensen  for the equaliser.At this stage the momentum was clearly with the home side, but Stoke defended stoutly, as they have done on many occasions this season, and their efforts were assisted by some poor decision making by the home forwards when chances fell to them.Eagles, who looked a classy player in much of what he did, was particularly wasteful. At 62 minutes  Danny Pugh came on for Lawrence, and Kitson for Sidibe.

Tuncay bustled about to great effect, on one occasion showing great skill getting to the edge of the Burnley box cutting the ball across, but none of his team mates were following up for the inviting tap in.Moult on for Tuncay 82mins.So an industrious, energetic, and productive performance from the Turkish captain, and a full 90 mins from Matty Etherington. Right at the death he brilliantly managed to curl a shot toward goal, but unfortunately it passed just outside the left hand post.

I am pretty sure that had this game been played on the allotted date with Burnley managerless and in turmoil at the time, we would have come away with all three points. Given the games we have had to get through recently I think most of us would have settled for a point tonight.

So still 11^th in the table and on 35 points. We can be certain that Mr.Pulis will keep things on the boil as he seeks certain safety.

Bring on the Villa.

NO SEMI-FINAL FOR STOKE CITY

CHELSEA 2 STOKE CITY 0

Stoke failed to reach the semi-final of the FA Cup for the first time since 1972.The first half was very much a cat and mouse affair,with Stoke largely cancelling out the home threat for the first half  hour. The opening minutes saw some pressure from Stoke with a series of Delap throws,which Chelsea defended with three centre backs, Mikel joining Terry and Alex in the role.From one throw, partially cleared  in the 12th minute, the ball reached Whitehead.His firmly hit shot brought a last ditch clearance from Mikel on the goal line.

Stoke's other chance of note fell to Tuncay.A Delap interception reached the Turk on the left.Unfortunately his first touch was not the best,allowing Alex to block,when a shot had looked on from a dangerous position.

Chelsea scored the all important opening goal taking the lead in the 34th minute.With Stoke defending the ball reached Terry to the right of goal.He layed the ball back to Lampard,whose drive from the edge of the penalty box took sufficient deflection off Mama Sidibe to defeat Sorensen's effort to save.

The second half saw more control from the home side,with the game being put beyond Stoke's reach in the 67th minute.A succession of Chelsea corners eventually saw Terry netting with a near post header.On the previous two Wilkinson had cleared the ball from immediate danger,but on this occasion the ball went into the net off him as he attempted to chest it away.Stoke's substitutions,unlike against Man City,made little impact, Kitson replacing Mama and Lawrence on for Tuncay.

Ricardo Fuller played a full part, managing his most threatening shot in the 91st minute,which Hilario saved with his feet from close range at his left post.To be fair Stoke never gave up trying,and at two goals down, AbdyFaye had two set piece headers go over the bar.You had to wonder what Ryan Shawcross might have made of the opportunities.

So on the day, The  Mighty Potters second best maybe,but always competitive.We now have to concentrate on gaining the points we need to ensure a third season in the Premiership, starting with the rearranged Burnley game on Wednesday night.

SIR ALEX FERGUSON RETAINS HIS INTEREST IN RYAN SHAWCROSS

The happy news is that,according to his consultant in London, Arsenal's Aaron Ramsey will make a complete recovery within six months.

Pretty much the same scenario as our own Rory Delap faced,with his own double fracture on his debut against Sunderland back in 2006, although with a fraction of the media interest.

According to the Daily Mirror Sport,Sir Alex Ferguson was in touch with Ryan Shawcross over the weekend (click link below).

Here's another man who knows the player well, having him at United for 6 years.......able to bring his experience and perspective to the situation. 

Daily Mirror Link

FABIO CAPELLO AND THE SHAWCROSS THING

We have all grown to like Fabio Capello for the no nonsense  COMMOMSENSE approach which he has brought to the management of our national football team. He clearly knows what is right and what is wrong, and he doesn't suffer highly paid fools gladly.

His uncomplicated approach has brought with it success.

I warmed to the man further yesterday, for what seems to me to be a display of common humanity and understanding. His contribution to preserving Ryan Shawcross' peace of mind and continuing future in the game cannot be underestimated in my opinion.

Within an hour of the game finishing he announced - later than expected,having taken time to consider the position carefully with his aides - his England squad, including Ryan Shawcross.

There is no doubt in my mind that he recognised genuine remorse,and, unlike the excitable idiots, Wenger included,he accepts that football is a full blooded  mans (or for that matter women's) game where sometimes major injuries will occur.

I have watched Ryan Shortcross's  attempt to win the ball from Aaron Ramsey several times. I believe it to be genuine and honest, as I did at the ground.

I have heard the description of the tangle from Arsenal's manager,and to be honest I did not,and still do not accept the implied/inferred malicious intent.Early LAZY journalistic comment simply mirrored his comments.

We should be so relieved for young Ryan, because I believe that Fabio's simple announcement, timed as it was, influenced and brought forward more considered, balanced comment from, for example, the 'MOTD' heavyweights, and some if not all the online MSM.

Messrs Shearer Hansen and Lineker, to their great credit, were in general agreement that the challenge was fair,coming as it did from the side, and with replays showing that Ramsey moved the ball too quickly for our centreback, resulting in a clumsy rather than nasty challenge from the Stoke man.They were satisfied there was no malicious intent.

Shawcross did not argue with anyone,he was simply too upset.Standing tall but tearful Shawcross trudged off.

Like the rest of us he clearly will wish Ramsey well, as will Capello, in my view a man of courage, principle and stature.

Fabio Capello has my full respect.

SUPERB GAME OF CONTRASTING STYLES OVERSHADOWED

STOKE CITY FC 1 ARSENAL 3

Arsenal paid Stoke the compliment of fielding the strongest team that they had available,missing key players Arshavin and Gallas. Stoke included Abdy Faye and Danny Pugh,with Lawrence and Diao giving way.

Stoke imposed themselves on the proceedings from the start,taking a deserved lead in the 8th minute.Delap's throw from the right was headed on by Ryan Shawcross for Danny Pugh to head in at the far post.Stoke bossed a good proportion of the half,but could not add to their score.Arsenal moved the ball around sweetly but did not really penetrate stoke's determined defence,until the 32nd minute when Fabregas,given a little to much space and time out on the right,crossed a fine ball for Bendtner to head back across Sorensen for the equaliser.

Despite much cut and thrust we reached half time all square.

Arsenal were swiftly into their stride after the break,playing their slick brand of flowing fluid passing football at pace.One or two Stoke players were beginning to look decidedly leggy as they had to work hard to cope.

Cope they did.The match turned on a most unfortunate event in the 65th minute just inside the Arsenal half in front of the Seddon stand.Ryan Shawcross challenged with Aaron Ramsey.The midfielder suffered a serious injury and after lengthy treatment he was stretchered away directly to an ambulance.To me it did not seem like an overly physical challenge,nor did it seem in any way malicious.Shawcross was sent off,it would seem,more for the severity of the injury than for the tackle itself.Shawcross was distraught,even before the red card was shown.His previous record speaks for itself....he is not a dirty player.

Stoke's brave 10 men held out, somewhat fortuitously at times,until the first minute of added on time. From a Bendtner flick there was contact between the ball and Danny Pugh's hand adjudged by Ref Walton to be deliberate.Thomas Sorensen guessed correctly,dived to his left,but failed to keep Fabregas' well placed effort out of his net.

Arsenal wrapped things up 2 minutes later when  Sorensen saved a sharp low shot but could not hold the ball,Fabregas , in quickest, squared for a Vermaelan tap in.

But the game will probably be remembered for the serious injury to Ramsey,and Shawcross's disconsolate trudge from the field of play.