Sport

Gera puts West Brom into pole position in race to Premier League

Wolves 0 West Brom 1: THE UNPREDICTABLE nature of the Championship this season means there may yet be another twist to come, …

RICHARD RAE at Molineux
Wed Apr 16 2008 - 01:00

Wolves 0 West Brom 1:THE UNPREDICTABLE nature of the Championship this season means there may yet be another twist to come, but with only three games to play West Bromwich Albion are in pole position. Victory over their bitter local rivals on Wolves own ground gives them a two-point lead at the top, and the win was fully deserved.

Despite this being the seventh meeting of the sides in the past two years, there was sufficient bite in the opening exchanges for it to be apparent that familiarity has yet to take the edge off the Black Country derby, especially with so much at stake.

Abion looked full of confidence from the start. Ishmael Miller rose unchallenged to head Zoltan Gera's cross on to the roof of the net in the fifth minute, setting the tone for an opening period dominated by the visitors.

Gera then headed a Jonathan Greening cross against the angle of the post and bar, Kevin Phillips almost turned the Hungarian's intelligent free-kick past Wayne Hennessey, and the young Wolves goalkeeper had to block Miller's shot with his feet.

READ MORE

Mick McCarthy's side's only effort in that time was a Sylvain Ebanks-Blake header which looped over the bar, but the home side gradually began to play their way into the game.

Ebanks-Blake, scorer of nine goals in 15 games since being signed from Plymouth, began to make his considerable physical presence felt, and Michael Gray's low shot, comfortably saved by Dean Kiely, presaged two scrambles in the Albion goalmouth.

But going forward Albion always looked dangerous, and it took another fine save by Hennessey to tip Paul Robinson's free-kick over the bar.

Albion continued to look the better side after the break. Phillips thumped a shot against the foot of Hennessey's right-hand post and after 59 minutes the veteran centre-forward beat the offside trap and squared for the unmarked Gera to side-foot home the winner from close range.

WOLVES: Hennessey, Foley (Kyle 81), Collins, Craddock, Elokobi, Jarvis, Olofinjana, Gibson, Gray (Eastwood 74), Keogh, Ebanks-Blake. Subs not used: Stack, Breen, Potter. Booked: Elokobi.

WEST BROM: Kiely, Hoefkens, Barnett, Clement, Robinson, Gera, Koren, Greening, Morrison (Moore 90), Miller (Bednar 46), Phillips (Pele 85). Subs not used: Martis, Brunt. Booked: Greening.

Referee: M Clattenburg (Tyne & Wear).