Blackpool Gets a Shock Victor

The quarter finals, semi-finals and the final all took place in yesterday's evening session of the World Snooker Shoot-out. There were still shocks to be had including the eventual winner.
Quarter Finals: Judd Trump was the first to be eliminated at this stage despite taking a 26-0 lead. His opponent Milkins came to the table and ended up winning the match 50-27. The impressive Mark King also got defeated, his opponent was the veteran Nigel Bond. Bond took the lead from the outset but just edged the match 29-23.

The shock of the quarter finals was world number one Neil Robertson getting dumped out by Marcus Campbell. Campbell took an early lead of 47-0 but Robertson looked certain to pull it back. However he missed an easy red at 47-33 and Campbell took the match 57-49. Mike Dunn was on course to beat the favourite Ronnie O'Sullivan at 14-0 but he ended up potting the cue ball. From there Ronnie only needed the one visit to progress into the semis with a 94-14 win.

Semi Finals: With three of the semi-finalists seeded below thirty a big surprise was on the cards. It was 36th seed Nigel Bond who secured the first sot in the final with a comprehensive 55-14 win. But the big shock was 33rd seed Milkins beating Ronnie O'Sullivan. Milkins took an early lead of 19-0 before Ronnie fought back to take the lead before missing a black at 26-19. Milkins took full advantage to win 72-35.

Final: With a shock victor already on the cards it was just a matter of which player would win it in the most nerve racking ten minutes of their lives. Milkins got the first chance after a long red but couldn't get on a colour and a poor safety led Bond to take a 6-1 lead. Following a defensive battle Bond was in again to move his score up to twenty before Milkins hit a fantastic plant, but he hit so well he wasn't on a colour. This allowed Bond to take full control of the game to win it 58-23 and become the first World Snooker Shoot-Out Champion.

Overall the tournament has been a big success with the element of surprise being a huge influential factor. Many purists would have hated ITV's Power Snooker as the rules were very different. But I think the purists will be a little happier with this format because the normal snooker rules apply (apart from ball in hand), all that is different is perhaps the speed but that only makes it more enjoyable. Steve Davis got it spot on by saying that 'Barry Hearn has the Midas touch when it comes to bringing in new tournaments' and indeed, it seems, he does.

FA Cup Fifth Round Draw

With Avram Grant eyeing a third FA Cup final, West Ham are treated to a home tie against Championship side Burnley. Manchester City will get a home tie against Aston Villa, providing they beat Notts County in the replay at the City of Manchester Stadium. Huth's late winner earns Stoke a nice home tie against Championship Brighton. Birmingham's comeback against Coventry sees them host another Championship side, this time in the shape of Sheffield Wednesday. Leyton Orient get a champagne tie they were hoping for at home to Arsenal. Chelsea or Everton will get the chance of hosting Reading. After Fulham's romp, they are rewarded with a home tie against either Bolton or Wigan. They say the FA Cup is the Cup of Dreams and non-league Crawley Town will certainly agree as their heroics at Torquay have given them a fifth round tie at Old Trafford, where a Manchester United side will be waiting.

FA Cup Fourth Round: Sunday's Action

Five games took place today to seal the final places on offer into the fifth round of sixteen teams. Arsenal were given a surprise run for their money at home to Huddersfield in the day's early kick-off. A Peter Clarke own goal put the Gunners ahead after 22 minutes but Alan Lee equalised for Huddersfield after 66. Arsenal were awarded a penalty just two minutes before the end and substitute Fabregas stepped up to put Arsenal into the fifth round.

One goal nine minutes from time separated the teams at Molineux in the untelevised one o'clock kick-off. Robert Huth scored for the visitors Stoke from a set-piece, surprise surprise, to down Wolves.

The untelevised two o'clock kick-off saw five goals at Upton Park where West Ham took on Nottingham Forest. The took just four minutes to get going when Victor Obinna put Avram Grant's side ahead. Dele Adebola equalised after eighteen minutes for Forest before David McGoldrick put the visitors ahead five minutes before half-time. But there was still enough time for a fourth goal in the first half; Victo Obinna scoring his second just two minutes after McGoldrick's goal. The winner came seven minutes into the second half when Victor Obinna got his hat-trick from the penalty spot. Surely Avram Grant can't get to his third FA Cup final with a struggling team?

Notts County were ten minutes away from causing the biggest shock of the round in the televised two o'clock kick-off. Manchester City were the visitors and they found themselves 1-0 down when Neal Bishop scored just before the hour mark. City equalised with ten minutes remaining with £27million Dzeko earning the replay.

The final match of the weekend saw Fulham romp into the fifth round with a win at home to sorry Tottenham. Two penalties in the space of three minutes saw Tottenham two down with a man down. Danny Murphy converted the first penalty after eleven minutes before Dawson was shown red after conceding the second penalty just two minutes later, Murphy again converting from the spot. Brede Hangeland put the tie all but over after just 23 minutes and Moussa Dembele finished the romp just before half-time.

World Shoot-Out: Third Round

Today is the final day of the inaugural World Snooker Shoot-Out with the third round taking place earlier today and the remaining rounds taking later tonight. First out of the hat for the third round was Mark King against Fergal O'Brien, so far no-one has scored a point against King. But this time was different however O'Brien only managed five as King won 61-5 to be the first into the quarter finals.

The second match saw Nigel Bond take on Rory McLeod. It was the veteran who got off to the best start after McLeod fouled on the pink to allow Bond a 42-7 lead. But, just like yesterday, McLeod fought back and went three points ahead before the timer rushed him into missing the final red and leaving it on. Bond potted it and went onto win 47-45.

Stuart Bingham was also guilty of fouling in a match where his opponent Mike Dunn seemed in total control, Dunn won 52-6. Trump made it into the third round by a single point and his third round match against Peter Lines was just as close. Trump made the early lead before fouling twice to allow Lines take a 37-17 lead. But Trump came back to win 39-37 to make into the quarters.

The darkhorse Robert Milkins performed well again to make it into the quarter finals. Day actually took a 22-6 lead before fouling on the black to allow Milkins to win 48-22. After Robertson's last gasp victory yesterday, he proved no match for Ken Doherty as the world number one eased through with a 63-13 lead.

The match of the round, on paper, was Ronnie O'Sullivan versus Mark Selby but like Marco Fu in the first round, Selby only got one shot. Ronnie cleared up to the black to win 129-0 to cement the top break of the tournament so far. The final third round match saw Campbell also ease into the quarter finals with a break of 76 to beat Anthony Hamilton 88-0.

FA Cup Fourth Round: Saturday's Action

The FA Cup returned today as the fourth round got underway. The televised lunchtime kick-off was at Goodison Park as we witnessed a re-run of the 2009 final between Everton and Chelsea. Louis Saha gave Everton the lead, just like in the final, after 62 minutes but Chelsea equalised through Solomon Kalou thirteen minutes later to set up a replay at Stamford Bridge.

Aston Villa hosted Blackburn in their tie that kicked-off at one o'clock. It took eleven minutes to get going when Ciaran Clark put Villa ahead but Blackburn equalised just seven minutes later through Kalinic. Robert Pires scored his first Villa goal to put them back into the lead after 35 minutes and Nathan Delfouneso all but made sure of the victory with three minutes of the first half remaining. The second half saw Nathan Baker receive a red card two minutes after the hour on only his second appearance at the club.

Sheffield Wednesday converted two penalties in a comfortable win over Hereford. Hereford did actually take the lead after nine minutes when Stuart Fleetwood scored but Darren Potter equalised for the Owls just six minutes later. Hereford were reduced to ten men when Joe Heath conceded the first penalty after 68 minutes, it was converted by Clinton Morrison. Wednesday went 3-1 ahead when Jermaine Johnson scored after 77 minutes and Morrison made it four with a second penalty just two minutes later.

The big shock came at Torquay as they were defeated by non-league Crawley Town. the missed two penalties but only needed a goal from Matt Tubbs eleven minutes before half-time to seal the game. Torquay had Chris Zebroski sent off just after the hour when he received a second yellow but the man count was levelled up seven minutes from time when Dean Howell also received a second yellow.

Reading were three minutes away from a replay before beating Stevenage. Mikele Leigertwood put the Royals ahead after 23 minutes but Stevenage equalised with eighteen minutes remaining through Darius Charles. Shane Long prevented the replay to put Reading through to the fifth round.

Just the one goal after sixteen minutes from Ashley Barnes was enough for Brighton to overcome Watford at Vicarage Road. But another shock came at the Liberty Stadium as Swansea lost to Leyton Orient late on. Jimmy Smith put Orient ahead after 35 minutes but Cedric Van Der Gun equalised just before half-time. The winner was scored two minutes from time when Alan Tate sliced a clearance past keeper Ma-Kalambay to give Orient the 2-1 win.

The only goalless tie of the round was at the Reebok where Bolton drew with Wigan, meaning a replay at the DW Stadium. But Burnley earned a comfortable win at home to Burton Albion. Chris Eagles put Burnley ahead just before the half hour mark and then added a second after seventy minutes. Calvin Zola pulled one back ten minutes later before substitute Martin Paterson finished it off in injury time.

Birmingham came from two down to see of Coventry at St.Andrew's. Marlon King put Coventry ahead after just eleven minutes before Richard Wood doubled the lead after 26 minutes. Bentley pulled one back for Birmingham ten minutes before half-time and Stuart Parnaby scored his first goal in five year to equalise after 67. The winner came from Kevin Phillips with seventeen minutes to play to edge Birmingham into the fifth round.

Manchester United have made it hard for themselves all season and today was no different. The teatime kick-off was St.Mary's as Southampton entertained the Red Devils. It was Southampton who went ahead just before half-time when Ricahrd Chaplow fired one past debutant keeper Anders Lindegaard. But as we've already seen this season, United can comeback and Michael Owen provided the equaliser after 65 minutes. With United having the momentum and also having Giggs and Nani off the bench, they went onto win ten minutes later through Javier Hernandez.

World Shoot-Out: Second Round

Tonight's action from Blackpool saw the second round matches take place. The beauty of it was that the draw was only made when it came live on air at 6pm so no-one knew who was going to play who. The first match drawn was Nigel Bond against Stephen Lee and the veteran Bond managed a 91 break to win 96-0.

The youngster Trump also managed to progress into the last sixteen by the skin of his teeth. His opponent was Mark Davis and it was the closest match of the tournament so far with Trump winning 31-30. Marcus Campbell was able to beat Andrew Higginson 67-1 to also progress.

The draw didn't produce many glitzy ties but we were still given our fair share of drama. Alfie Burden looked like he was progressing into the last sixteen with a 59-39 lead over Mike Dunn with only two minutes left. However a poor snooker allowed Dunn to fluke a shot and comeback to pinch the match 66-59.

Robert Milkins impressed in the first round and could prove to be a darkhorse with a 54-9 win over Tom Ford. Stuart Bingham also progressed by the tightest of margins to beat Adrian Gunnell 37-34. Tony Drago was given a bye into the second round but only just lost the match against Rory McLeod in amazing fashion. Drago had a 59-1 lead at one stage but McLeod forced it all the way to a black ball finish, in which McLeod smashed the black around three corners before his cannoned off the cue ball into a pocket with the cue ball agonizingly close to going in as well, McLeod pinched it 61-57.

Mark Selby kept up his title credentials with a comfortable 89-6 win over Stuart Pettman. John Higgins wasn't so lucky and became the first shock of the second round as he lost 54-47 to Peter Lines. World number one Neil Robertson also showed his worth with the tightest match yet, the score was 49-43 to Alan McManus with seconds remaining and Robertson on the black. Robertson struck the shot before the time ran out but the black didn't drop until after the time was up. Referee Paul Collier stated that because the shot was struck before the time ran out then it counts and Robertson progresses with a 50-49 victory.

Ronnie O'Sullivan didn't have such drama and was able to see off Rod Lawler 93-34. Ali Carter expressed how much he wanted to win this competition but his hopes were diminished by Fergal O'Brien with the Irishman winning 57-48. Anthony Hamilton managed to beat Dominic Dale 32-15 to progress.

Steve Davis' dream was burst by Mark King after King fell one short of O'Sullivan's highest break of 113 to win 120-0. In a battle of veterans, Ken Doherty managed to beat Joe Perry with a score of 83-25. The final match of the round and the night saw Ryan Day end Graeme Dott's hopes of success with a 53-40 win. The last sixteen raw takes place as soon as the action does at 2pm tomorrow.

World Shoot-Out: Second Half of Round One

Just like yesterday, today's afternoon session saw the remaining first round matches with all the upsets and top performances. First up was World number one Neil Robertson as he took on Barry Pinches. Robertson showed his class with a break of 81 to make a century score, winning 106-15.

Barry Hawkins was fighting back against Peter Lines until a crucial foul that allowed Lines to win 65-24. The first shock of the afternoon came in the form of Shaun Murphy as he tumbled out to Rory McLeod. There was less than a minute remaining with McLeod still three behind but the underdog managed to pinch it and show Murphy the door.

A century break of 106 saw Alfie Burden beat Matthew Selt with the first whitewash of day's play. Joe Perry rolled back the years to break the century scoreline with a top break of 71, he overcame Ricky Walden 130-0.

The highly fancied Judd Trump was almost shown the door against Dave Harold. Harold was in control until he lost track of the time and the shot clock forced an error. This left Trump to win 52-31. Graeme Dott joined fellow veterans into the second round with a 99-16 victory over Matthew Couch.

It does seem that this tournament is surprisingly suiting the veterans as Ken Doherty also progressed with an 81-1 victory over Jamie Cope. Adrian Gunnell became the first player of the tournament to overturn a deficit of thirty points. He was 30-0 behind against David Morris but Gunnell fought back to win 85-30.

Rod Lawler also produced a somewhat surprise in beating Gerard Greene. Greene should have won it when he came back from 36-0 down but he missed an easy red at 38-36 to allow Lawler to win 55-38. Mike Dunn also beat Matthew Stevens 67-36 to progress into the last 32.

In one of the lesser games, Stuart Pettman just edged out Belgian Bjorn Hanneveer. Hanneveer managed to fluke his way to a winning chance but missed a red to allow Pettman to win 41-35. Mark Davis beat Joe Swail in one of the less fluent games 49-6.

The Jester from Leicester Mark Selby also managed to progress into the next round by seeing off Andy Hicks 44-34. At the age of just nineteen, Scot Anthony McGill had a chance at glory against Anthony Hamilton. But Hamilton managed to win 70-31. The final first round match saw Stuart Bingham to come back form 31-0 to beat Ian McCulloch 46-31.

The Clock Is Ticking

Yesterday saw the start of the new snooker tournament, the World Snooker Shoot-out. It's being hosted in Blackpool where the top 64 players are competing. There is a maximum of one frame or ten minutes to make it fast and furious. If that wasn't enough then for the first five minutes each player has a twenty second shot clock which decreases to fifteen second for the final five minutes. The draw for each round is random and the break is decided via a lag. Every shot must have either a ball potted or a ball contacting a cushion otherwise it's a foul, every foul gives the opponent the ball in hand, where he can place the cue ball anywhere on the table.

The first session yesterday saw the first half of the first round take to the new format. Unfortunately Liang Wenbo had to pull out of the tournament which meant that Tony Drago was given a bye into the second round. The first two to take to the table was Mark Allen and Ryan Day. Allen was favourite and did take the lead but a break of 38 saw Ryan Day become the first player to win in the tournament and also provide the first shock.

Stephen Lee followed Day into the next round with a 62-34 victory over Michael Holt. Joe Jogia was the lowest ranked player and it showed with a couple of misses on easy shots, that allowed veteran Nigel Bond go through with a 46-24 win.

Another veteran in the form of Stephen Hendry didn't have the same luck and fell victim to Irishman Fergal O'Brien. Hendry had a chance to pull it back but eventually lost 55-29. One of the performances of the night saw Robert Milkins upset Martin Gould. The underdog Milkins secured a break of 49 on his way to winning 82-6.

With many people surprised at how high the scores were finishing, the match between Andrew Higginson and Jamie Burnett looked underpar. The overall average of points for the night was 80+ but this game only had 43, Higginson won it 27-16.

Another upset saw Scotsman Stephen Maguire lose out to Tom Ford, proving that anything can indeed happen. Ford secured the first whitewash with an impressive break of 84. Another shock quickly followed as newly crowned Masters Champion Ding Junhui lost 71-15 against Dominic Dale, with Dale making a break of 70.

Jimmy White was excited about this tournament but he only lasted the first round. Ali Carter beat the veteran 62-28. Alan McManus secured a somewhat surprise victory over Michael Judge, Judge did have a chance to fight back but failed to do so and lost 72-26.

One the tastiest fixtures of the first round saw John Higgins take on Mark Williams. Higgins turned on the style and made a break of 93 to see off the Welshman. But Higgins was quickly outdone by the man who really endorsed this tournament. Ronnie O'Sullivan had a potentially tough first round opponent in the Masters runner-up Marco Fu. But Ronnie secured the first century break to win 133-0.

Two veterans clashed after with Peter Ebdon taking on Steve Davis, a member of the audience shouted 'it's got nil nil written all over it!'. But Davis progressed with a 72-24 win. Marcus Campbell beat Jamie Michie 32-21 and Mark King rounded the first session off by beating Jimmy Robertson 79-0.

Birmigham Needed Extra Time and Liverpool Win Again

The second leg of the second semi-final needed extra time to decide who would be facing Arsenal in the first final of the season. West Ham took a 2-1 aggregate advantage to St.Andrews after Foster's blunder. Boosted by it, West Ham came out extended their aggregate lead when Carlton Cole broke the deadlock just after the half hour mark. Birmingham pulled one back fourteen minutes into the second half with a goal from Lee Bowyer to equalise on the night. Roger Johnson forced extra time with a goal eleven minutes from time to make it 2-1 on the night and 3-3 on aggregate (the only scoreline that would bring penalties). But the tie was won just four minutes into extra time when Craig Gardner became a Blues hero, making 3-1 on the night and 4-3 on aggregate. Arsenal are clear favourites for their piece of silverware since 2005 but Birmingham could well spoil the party.

In the Premiership, Liverpool hosted Fulham in their re-arranged winter match. Only one goal settled the tie but it was a rather unlucky one. It came seven minutes into the second half when a shot bounced off the post to hit Pantsil and rebound into the net to give Liverpool their first home win under Dalglish. The win lifts them up to seventh in the table and are firmly pushing for a Europa League spot.

Arsenal Overturn Deficit, Villa Win Two On the Bounce and United Get Lucky, Again

Tonight's action saw the first second leg of the Carling Cup semi-finals plus two re-arranged Premiership matches. After beating Arsenal 1-0 at Portman Road, Ipswich had the unenviable task of holding their lead at the Emirates. Manager Paul Jewell had only just been given the job prior to the first leg and therefore didn't manage Ipswich for it. But his side held Arsenal for 61 minutes until Nicklas Bendtner put the Gunners 1-0 ahead and level on aggregate. From there it looked to be only one winner and Laurent Koscielny made it 2-0 just three minutes later to give Arsenal the lead in the tie. Captain Fabregas was in top form tonight and deserved a goal to put the tie to bed with thirteen minutes left to go. Arsenal book their place at Wembley with their final opponents being named tomorrow as Birmingham clash with West Ham in their second leg.

Back in the Premiership, the DW Stadium held an untelevised meeting between Wigan and Aston Villa. Again there were no goals until the second half but Gabriel Agbonlahor gave Villa the lead just five minutes after the restart. Villa, who had momentum after seeing off Manchester City at the weekend, were awarded a penalty in the 62nd minute and captain Ashley Young sent Ali Al-Habsi the wrong way. Wigan pulled one back with ten minutes remaining thanks to James McCarthy but Villa held on for a second consecutive victory. The win moves Villa up to thirteenth but most teams around them have a game in hand.

Harry Redknapp said that if Manchester United remain unbeaten all season it would be a miracle. Well it was some sort of miracle for Manchester United to gain all three points away at Bloomfield Road. The speculation was all about Charlie Adam's possible move but by kick-off all that was forgotten as Adam became Blackpool's influential captain and playmaker again. United failed to maintain possession for most of the first half and their defending at set pieces was dreadful. Blackpool took full advantage and shook the Premiership after just fifteen minutes when a Charlie Adam corner wasn't defended and former United youngster Craig Cathcart was on hand to head home. United didn't learn from their mistakes and went two down two minutes before half-time; another Adam corner was flicked on from Nani and DJ Campbell pounced to head Blackpool 2-0 up. The second half didn't get much better and it should've got worse when Rafael looked to have barged into Varney in the box, but referee Peter Walton gave nothing. The tide of the match after the tactic of the match was played; an underwhelming Rooney was brought off after 66 minutes for Hernandez. They immediately started playing fast flowing football that a tiring Blackpool team couldn't deal with and Berbatov pulled one back with eighteen minutes left. Just two minutes later United equalised when Hernandez was put through by Giggs and the Mexican touched it past Kingson. Three minutes later an unfortunate clash of heads between Rafael and Harewood left Rafael dazed and in a heap. Reports at the minute say it's just concussion with worried brother Fabio leaving by his side down the tunnel. After that timely delay, United carried on where they left off and Berbatov broke free following a quick break and slotted past Kingson to make 3-2 and to win the game with two minutes of normal time left, but they still had to endure another ten minutes of injury time. The lucky win sees United go five points clear at the top with still a game in hand over Arsenal.

Sky Sports Shock

As mentioned, Saturday's lunch-time kick-off was rather historic in that Sian Massey was running the line at Molineux. It was her second Premiership appearance and for me she did a fine job. But, as with most things, some people cannot adapt to change and unfortunately a female official proved too much for a couple of Sky Sports' senior correspondents.

Sky Sports is entering its twentieth year on our screens and presenter Richard Keys with commentator Andy Gray have been there pretty much all the way. But they weren't completely swayed by Sian Massey. Off air, before the show, pitchside reporter Andy Burton told Gray that Massey was officiating and with all male banter Burton added 'I've been told that she's a looker'. I know feminists and many females in general feel deeply upset when males talk to other males about appearances, but it is a walk of life and females do just the same about males.

Although that may have offended some enough, for me, the worst part was Andy Gray jokingly saying 'what do women know about the offside rule?'. Some feel that this little joke may have blown out of proportion and it has been heard many a time down at the local. But I feel that to use that joke about a female official is a little harsh. Massey obviously has the Premiership standard and she shown it during the game so to question it, even jokingly, is wrong.

It gets worse for Mr.Gray as he also conversed with Richard Keys on the subject using the same sexist opinion. Keys also agreed with Gray by the saying 'the game's gone mad!' Which in itself seems to be a degrading comment. He then brought in Karen Brady, one of few female chairpeople in football, whom he sarcastically called charming. He then went onto say 'do me a favour love' after commenting about her sexism in sport article for a newspaper. Unsurprisingly when word of this got out all three were suspended from Monday Night Football but it got worse for Andy Gray as he has had his contract with Sky terminated. There's been no word about Richard Keys or Andy Burton but I fear unless they get on their knees and apologise, they could be heading for the exit door along with Andy Gray.

It was unnecessary and although it was supposed to be harmless banter, unfortunately it wasn't the place or the time to question Sian Massey's credentials and honestly I think action had to be taken. Whether it meant sacking, that's not for me to judge but they definitely over-stepped the line. I wish Sian Massey good luck for the future and that she graces herself on the Premiership scene again, she definitely did better than some male linesmen have done anyhow!

Blackburn Move To Seventh and Chelsea Back On Song

Super Sunday wasn't exactly super this week as we only had one game due to another installment of Monday Night Football. The cameras headed to Ewood Park as Blackburn took on West Brom, who have been woeful away from home. The game started at a really good pace with both teams looking threatening despite not creating a lot of chances. The best chance came within a minute when West Brom looked to punish Blackburn for sloppy possession play in mid-field, but Odemwingie's shot was smartly parried for a corner by Robinson. It was looking like going into half-time at 0-0 but with four minutes remaining the deadlock was broken, a Blackburn cross was headed into his own net by Tamas. The game did break a record at Ewood Park with no less then 21 internationals playing in the game overall, the most amount in a Premiership match. It was a Canadian who scored the decisive goal after just two minutes into the second half, David Hoillet sealed the victory for Blackburn which sees them move up to seventh in the league.

Monday Night Football this week was at the Reebok where Bolton hosted the out-of-sorts Chelsea. Ancelotti had almost conceded the title in his press conference but last night's performance has now convinced him otherwise after wiping Bolton aside. It took just eleven minutes before Drogba blasted Chelsea ahead with a bullet strike. Chelsea doubled their lead four minutes before half-time with a goal from Florent Malouda. The game was virtually finished eleven minutes after the restart when Anelka fired them three ahead and Ramires scored his first goal in English football with sixteen minutes left to finish the game 4-0. The win sees Chelsea move back into fourth place, three points ahead of Tottenham.

Hat-Tricks and Braces

Saturday's Premiership action saw eight games where three braces and two hat-tricks were scored. The first brace came in the lunchtime kick-off where Wolves hosted Liverpool, it was a historic game as Sian Massey was on the line for only the second time in the Premiership. She had a big call to make regarding the first goal and she was correct in saying Raul Meireles was on-side, he played the ball inside to Torres for a tap-in nine minutes before half-time. Raul Meireles played his best game in the Premiership so far and even managed to score a wonder goal to put Liverpool 2-0 ahead just five minutes into the second half. Kenny Dalglish was made sure of his first win back in charge when Torres scored his second in injury time to make it 3-0.

Another brace at Craven Cottage as Fulham beat Stoke 2-0. Clint Dempsey put Fulham ahead after 33 minutes to give them the lead at half-time. He was then brought down by Ryan Shawcross ten minutes into the second half and Shawcross received red, Dempsey stepped up and converted the penalty to win the game.

Arsenal kept the pressure up at the top with a comfortable win over Wigan. Van Perise kept up his run of form with a hat-trick. Ali Al-Habsi was Wigan's best player and made some unbelievable saves but Van Persie broke the deadlock after 21 minutes. Van Persie doubled his tally thirteen minutes into the second half. He could have had his hat-trick after 70 minutes when Gary Caldwell conceded a penalty and received red, but the Dutchman skied the penalty. But he did get his hat-trick five minutes before the end to finish it 3-0.

Manchester United also won comfortably yesterday. It was one of their rare dominating performances at home to Birmingham. It took just two minutes for United to break the deadlock through Berbatov. He added a second after 31 minutes and Giggs, who was influential throughout the game, made it 3-0 just before half-time. Berbatov secured his third hat-trick of the season eight minutes into the second half and Nani rounded it off with United's fifth with fourteen minutes to play.

Tottenham took a stumble at St.James' Park but Newcastle lost two points in second half injury time for the second game running. It was a dull first half but Newcastle took the lead just fourteen minutes into the second half from an unlikely source, Coloccini scored with a striker's finish. But Tottenham managed to fight for a point and Aaron Lennon equalised for spurs in the dying minutes.

A piece of FA stupidity occurred at Goodison where Everton entertained strugglers West Ham. Surprisingly though West Ham managed to take the lead through in form Jonathan Spector after 26 minutes. Everton equalised with thirteen minutes remaining with a goal from Bilyaletdinov. West Ham thought they had won it with six minutes left when Piquionne scored, he ran into the crowd which the FA deem to be a bookable offence and Peter Walton had no choice but to brandish it. It was Piquionne's second yellow and had to go unfortunately. It definitely haunted West Ham as Everton found an equaliser in the depths of injury time through Fellaini.

Sunderland's week has been an angry one with Steve Bruce moaning about the sale of Darren Bent. However they managed to win without their number one striker away to Blackpool. Kieron Richardson stepped up to the plate for Sunderland and gave them the lead after fifteen minutes. Richardson gave away a foul for a high boot on Eardley. The free-kick was headed clear by Sunderland to Gyan on the half-way line, he found Richardson and he scored his second goal of the match nine minutes before half-time. Blackpool pulled a goal back with four minutes left when captain Adam converted a penalty.

The tea-time kick-off was a battle between £24 and £27 million pounds. Aston Villa had recruited Darren Bent earlier in the week and he was up against Manchester City's big January signing Edin Dzeko. The bout was finished after just eighteen minutes when Bent managed to score on his debut after Hart had parried a Young shot. Villa just about held on to see out the 1-0 win and move ahead of rivals Birmingham while City's title hopes took a huge knock.

FA Cup 3rd Round Replays

Three of the four Fa Cup 3rd round replays took place on Tuesday with the final one taking place yesterday. Wales hosted a replay as Cardiff entertained Stoke after their 1-1 draw at the Britannia. The replay needed extra time as neither team could break the deadlock after ninety minutes. But it only two minutes of extra time before Jon Walters gave Stoke the lead, he then went onto seal the victory with a second five minutes before full-time.

Stoke will face a trip to Molineux after Wolves secured their fourth round by thrashing Doncaster. They initially drew 2-2 at Doncaster but Wolves showed their Premiership class in the replay. It took just five minutes for Wolves to take the lead after Steven Fletcher found the net. Geoffrey Mujangi Bia doubled Wolves lead just after the hour mark before Kevin Doyle made it 3-0 six minutes later. Matt Jarvis scored Wolves' fourth sixteen minutes from time and the rout was ended in injury time when David Jones added a fifth.

Manchester City face an away tie against Notts County after beating Leicester 4-2 in their replay. The Walkers Stadium was given a 2-2 draw and Leicester did put up a fight all the way. Carlos Tevez gave City the lead after quarter of an hour and went onto miss a penalty in the second half. Leicester were awarded a penalty themselves just four minutes after Tevez's opener and Paul Gallagher converted to equalise. Two goals in a minute took City 3-1 ahead before half-time; Patrick Vieira made it 2-1 on his fiftieth FA Cup appearance after 37 minutes. Adam Johnson made it 3-1 after City regained possession straight from the re-start. Lloyd Dyer set up a nervy final seven minutes when he made it 3-2 but City restored their two goal lead in injury time through Kolarov.

After a 1-1 draw at the Emirates, Arsenal managed to see off Leeds in Wednesday's only replay to ensure a home tie against Huddersfield. It took five minutes for Samir Nasri to give Arsenal the lead and went 2-0 ahead after 35 minutes with a goal from Sagna. Leeds came back into the game by pulling a goal back just two minutes later through Bradley Johnson. Arsenal won the game in the 76th minute when a Bendtner cross was met by Van Persie and the Dutchman made it 3-1.

Ding Becomes the Master

With the Masters proving a real shock, we were entitled to an historic first all-Asian final between China's Ding Junhui and Hong Kong's Marco Fu. Ding made it to the final by beating Mark Williams 6-4 in the first round, comfortably beating Graeme Dott 6-2 in the quarter finals and beat Jamie Cope 6-3 in the semi-finals. Marco Fu overcame Stephen Maguire 6-4 in the first round, thrashed Peter Ebdon 6-0 in the quarter-finals and came from 4-1 down to beat dark horse Mark Allen 6-4.

It was Ding who started the match off quickly by scoring the only century break of the final in the first frame. He then took the following leg before Fu managed to pull one back. Ding began to run away with it and went 6-4 ahead before taking the next four frames to win the match, to win his first ever Masters tournament.

Derby Day is a Draw

Super Sunday saw a hat-trick of games which included two major derbies, with a third derby taking place un-televised. The un-televised derby kicked off at twelve between Sunderland and Newcastle, a pattern was set for all for games as they all ended in a draw. Newcastle were hoping for a re-run of the 5-0 thrashing earlier in the season but this time had to wait seven minutes into the second half to break the deadlock, Kevin Nolan finding the net. The equaliser came late into injury time with Asamoah Gyan securing a point for Sunderland. Newcastle moved back into ninth with Sunderland staying put in sixth.

The first of the three televised matches also kicked off at twelve and it was the second city derby between Birmingham and Villa. Both teams had glorious chances in the first half with Villa hitting the bar three times and Derbyshire missing a two yard tap in. The deadlock was broken just four minutes into the second half when a mis-hit Gardner free-kick wasn't defended well and Roger Johnson smashed it home. Villa deserved a point out of the game and found their equaliser seventeen minutes from time when James Collins hit a shot that deflected off Ridgewell to beat Foster. The point moves Villa back out of the drop zone into seventeenth with Birmingham just ahead of them.

Straight after that we headed to Anfield where Kenny Dalglish was managing his first home game against bitter rivals Everton. Dalglish got off to the best possible start when Raul Meireles smashed the ball past Howard just before the half hour mark. Everton started the second brightly though and equalised just a minute after the restart with Sylvain Distin scoring his first Everton goal. Everton pushed on with the momentum and took the lead six minutes later when Jermiane Beckford found the net. Liverpool were awarded a penalty when Maxi Rodriguez was brought down by Howard. Kuyt stepped up and converted to equalise for Liverpool after 68 minutes. The point sees both teams remain where they were with Everton just above Liverpool.

Super Sunday finished at White Hart Lane where Tottenham entertained Manchester United. It was a fantastic midfield game with some exceptional passing but neither keeper was worked too hard. Manchester United's best chance came in the first half when Rooney hit a shot that an unsighted Gomes could only parry. Tottenham's best chance was a header from Van Der Vaart hat went millimetres wide. United were reduced to ten men with half an hour left when Rafael was harshly shown a second yellow card after he and Modric crossed paths, which Modric used to fall over. However Tottenham couldn't use the man advantage and the game finished goalless, enough to see United go back to the top of the league on goal difference. Tottenham remain fifth but just two points behind Chelsea with a game in hand.

Barcaly's Premier League Round-Up 15/1/11

After the FA Cup break, the Premiership returned to a full programme with six matches yesterday. There was no lunch-time kick-off so we had to wait till three o'clock to get out juices flowing.

Stoke moved level on points with Bolton with a game in hand after Pulis' side beat the Wanderers 2-0 at the Britannia. Danny Higginbotham scored Stoke's first goal eight minutes before half-time. Matthew Etherington converted from the spot to secure all three points after 63 minutes.

Chelsea continued their winning streak from the FA Cup to beat Blackburn at Stamford Bridge. Blackburn's re-signing of Roque Santa Cruz should have motivated the side but the Paraguayan started on the bench. Blackburn held Chelsea until the twelfth minute into the second half when Branislav Ivanovic broke the deadlock. Nicolas Anelka rounded the game off with fourteen minutes to play. Chelsea now move back into the top four ahead of Tottenham, with Spurs playing Manchester United today.

Wigan managed to move out of the relegation zone after gaining a point at home to Fulham. Hugo Rodallega gave the Latics the lead twelve minutes into the second half. The returning Andy Johnson scored the equaliser with four minutes remaining although questions have to be asked about the goalkeeping.

Manchester City moved to the top of the Premiership with United playing today and also having games in hand over their bitter rivals. They were pushed all the way by Wolves but City managed to hold on for the win. Wolves did take the lead after twelve minutes via Nenad Milijas with City not playing well at all. Kolo Toure equalised five minutes before half-time to steal the momentum. Tevez made it 2-1 City just four minutes into the second half and Yaya Toure made it three just five minutes. It looked to be all done and dusted when Tevez scored his second and City's fourth after 66 minutes. But Wolves received a penalty two minutes later which Kevin Doyle converted and it became 4-3 with four minutes left when Zubar found the net. But City managed to hold on to take top spot.

There was a five goal thriller at the Hawthornes as West Brom entertained Blackpool. The visitors took the lead after eleven minutes through David Vaughn but Odemwingie equalised eight minutes before half-time. James Morrison put West Brom ahead seven minutes into the second half but Gary Taylor-Fletcher equalised for Blackpool with ten minutes remaining. The winner came three minutes from the end as Odemwingie scored his second of the match.

The tea-time kick-off saw Arsenal move to within a point of Manchester United with a comfortable win over West Ham. They could potentially meet in the Carling Cup final if West Ham hold onto their lead and Arsenal overturn their deficit against Ipswich. Robin Van Persie put Arsenal ahead after thirteen minutes before Walcott added a second four minutes before half-time. Van Perise rounded it off with his second from the penalty spot with thirteen minutes left to play.

Masters Proving a Shock

The first major Snooker tournament of 2011 is well under way but so far it has caused quite a few shocks. There are only sixteen entrants and the first round has been completed with seven of the top eight seeds losing their matches. First to leave the tournament was last year's champion Mark Selby who lost 6-4 to Mark King. Ali 'The Cat' Carter followed the same day after losing 6-5 to Peter Ebdon. The second day of the tournament saw Ding Junhui meet Mark Williams (not for the first time this season), Ding just managed to come out with a win by the margin of 6-4. The second match of the day was an all Scottish affair between Graeme Dott and John Higgins. The money would have been on Higgins but he suffered a surprise defeat as well, losing 6-4.

Day three saw last year's runner-up Ronnie O'Sullivan become the latest shock with a defeat to Mark Allen, 6-4. Another tight affair between Marco Fu and Stephen Maguire saw the Hong Kong man win 6-4. Wednesday saw the first non-shock of the tournament as Neil Robertson made it into the quarter finals, he didn't have it easy to start with but managed to overcome Stephen Hendry 6-3. But a shock was soon to follow as Shaun Murphy lost 6-3 to Jamie Cope in the final first round match.

Big Upsets In League Cup and Premier League

Yesterday served up two big matches in the League Cup and the Premiership, in which both gave quite a shock. The first leg of the second semi-final of the League Cup was at Portman Road where Ipswich met Arsenal. Arsenal are clear favourites for the cup and were favorites to thrash Ipswich after they were defeated 7-0 by Chelsea on Sunday in the FA Cup. New manager Paul Jewell watched his team perform before taking the helm after the match and it proved to be a good watch. Only one goal separated the sides and it didn't come from a fairly strong, lacklustre Arsenal side. The winner came twelve minutes from the end via a solo run from Tamas Priskin.

The other shock came in the Premiership at Bloomfield Road. Kenny Dalglish was looking to put Saturday's first game in charge behind him after that defeat to Manchester United. But his first Premiership game didn't quite go to plan either against Blackpool. It was the first re-arranged Premiership match due to the winter weather and Liverpool struck first after just three minutes with a goal from Torres. The lead only lasted nine minutes however until Gary Taylor-Fletcher equalised for the home side. The winner came 21 minutes from time with a goal from DJ Campbell to seal defeat for Dalglish and Liverpool. The result sees Liverpool in thirteenth place, just four points from the relegation whereas Blackpool stay in the top-half of the table.

England's Calamitous Goalkeeping Continues

After Joe Hart's blunder on Sunday to allow Leicester the draw in the FA Cup, it was the the first leg of the first semi final of the League Cup. West Ham hosted Birmingham at Upton Park and bad news for England was that another top English goalkeeper made an awful blunder to allow their opponents the win.

Avram Grant's job is still very much on the line despite their 2-0 win in the FA Cup. Brighter news for the Hammers though is that Wayne Bridge is looking likely to join on loan from Manchester City. As for Birmingham, Alex McLeish's side were looking at a real prospect at bringing some silverware back to the Midlands. It was the home side that started strongly and after three glorious chances in as many seconds Mark Noble eventually found the net from an incredibly acute angle. The second half didn't go West Ham's way, however, as Birmingham found an equaliser just nine minutes after the restart; Liam Ridgewell finding the with a powerful header. It got even worse for West Ham just three minutes later when Victor Obinna had a quick rush of blood, or rush of stupidity, and kicked out at Seb Larsson and deservedly received a red card. The blunderous moment came twelve minutes from time when Carlton Cole struck a relatively soft shot to the right of keeper Foster, he looked have made sufficent ground to comfortably save it but the ball somehow managed to go through Foster's legs and roll into the net. Giving West Ham a 2-1 lead going into the second leg at St.Andrews and giving Avram Grant slightly more job security.

A quick note on the FA Cup, the final third round tie was played yesterday between Wycombe and Hereford. After two goals on Saturday in the second round replay, his second being the ultimate winner, Mathieu Manset was on hand to score the only goal after 32 minutes to set up a fourth round tie away to Sheffield Wednesday.

FA Cup 4th Round Draw

Torquay United v Crawley Town/Derby County
Watford v Brighton and Hove Albion
Bolton Wanderers v Wigan Athletic
Arsenal/Leeds United v Huddersfield Town
Fulham v Tottenham Hotspur
Everton v Chelsea
Southampton v Manchester United
Swansea v Leyton Orient
Burnley v Burton Albion
Birmingham City v Coventry City
Doncaster Rovers/Wolverhampton Wanderers v Stoke City/Cardiff City
Notts County v Leicester City/Manchester City
Stevenage Borough v Reading
Aston Villa v Blackburn Rovers
West Ham United v Nottingham Forest
Sheffield Wednesday v Wycombe Wanderers/Hereford

FA Cup 3rd Round: Sunday's Results

Today saw four more tie played with the final tie between Crawley and Derby being played tomorrow. The one o'clock kick-off the highly anticipated tie at Old Trafford where Manchester United played Liverpool. Kenny Dalglish was temporarily in charge after Roy Hodgson's dismissal yesterday. In truth, the game was over after half an hour. Manchester United were awarded a penalty after just thirty seconds when Aurelio brought Berbatov down, although the Bulgarian did go down rather easily, Ryan Giggs converted the goal. Liverpool were then down to ten men after half an hour when Gerrard went in two footed against Carrick and was rightly dismissed. United came close to a second just before half-time when Johnny Evans hit the post and should have scored early in the second half when a mad scramble saw Reina and co save themselves about five times in quick succession. Liverpool's only real chance was a free-kick from Aurelio that was neatly saved but United went onto a comfortable 1-0 win.

Tottenham eased past Charlton at White Hart Lane. All three goals were scored in the second half with Andros Townsend giving Spurs the lead just four minutes into it. Defoe made it 2-0 after 58 minutes before netting his second goal just two minutes later.

Chelsea's poor run of form may have been well and truly kicked into touch by thrashing manager less Ipswich. Paul Jewell is expected to take over after Roy Keane was given his marching orders and will be glad he didn't take charge of this one. Danny Sturridge opened the scoring after 33 minutes before Kalou made it 2-0 a minute later. Carlos Edwards then netted into his own goal four minutes before half-time to make it 3-0. The second half got worse for Ipswich with Anelka making it 4-0 four minutes after the restart, Danny Sturridge then scored his second two minutes later. There was still enough time for Lampard to score twice in a minute after the 79th minute to finish the game 7-0.

Leicester managed to force a replay against Manchester City with a 2-2 draw at the Walkers Stadium. Leicester took the lead inside a minute when Sol Bamba scored his first goal in English football. James Milner equalised for City after 23 minutes before Tevez scored a crucial goal just before half-time. Leicester weren't to be denied and scored their equaliser after 64 minutes through Andy King.

FA Cup 3rd Round: Saturday's Results

Goals, goals, penalties and more goals were on the agenda as England's biggest cup competition entered the third round. The opening match was a tale of two penalties as Arsenal entertained Leeds. All the main action came in the second half as Leeds were awarded a penalty just nine minutes into the second half when Max Gradel was tripped by Denilson. Robert Snodgrass converted it and looked to be on their way to the fourth round. Arsenal thought they had a penalty in the dying minutes after a 'foul' from Alex Bruce on Walcott, referee Phil Dowd awarded it before moments later awarding a free-kick instead to Leeds for offside on Bendtner. However just a minute later Walcott was tugged back by Parker in the box and this time a penalty was awarded which Fabregas converted to set up a replay at Elland Road.

One of quite a few shocks occurred at the Pirelli Stadium where Burton Albion played Middlesbrough. Boro took the lead thirteen minutes into the second half through a Gary O'Neil free-kick. Shaun Harrad equalised for Albion with eight minutes remaining before Harrad then won the game in injury time.

Swnasea eased past Colchester at the Liberty Stadium to make it into the fourth round. Garry Monk broke the deadlock after 25 minutes before Darren Pratley doubled the lead ten minutes later. Cedric Van Der Gun made it three after 68 minutes and Scott Sinclair rounded it off eight minutes from time to make it 4-0.

Blackburn left it a little late to dismiss Championship high-flyers QPR. David Hoilett scored the only goal at Ewood Park with thirteen minutes left.

Bolton also left it late to see off a courageous York City at the Reebok. Owen Coyle had to rely on his big substitutes to win the game; Kevin Davies broke the deadlock with seven minutes left before Johan Elmander made it 2-0 six minutes later.

Aston Villa stopped the rot with an away win against Sheffield United. New loan signing Kyle Walker gave Villa the lead against his old club with a mazy run after just nine minutes. Marc Albrighton made it 2-0 twelve minutes before half-time but United came out strong in the second half and were awarded a penalty three minutes into it, Jamie Ward converted it. It got worse for Villa when Ashley Young received a second yellow card after 77 minutes but the ten men held on and Petrov made it 3-1 in stoppage time.

West Brom became one of a few Premiership sides to be eliminated with a defeat to Reading at the Madejski. Shane Long scored the only goal for Reading four minutes before half-time. West Brom were reduced to ten men when half-time substitute picked his second yellow card on the hour mark.

West Ham recovered from their mid-week battering with a 2-0 win over Barnsley. Jonathan Spector opened the scoring just before the half hour mark with Frederic Piquionne finishing it off in second half injury time.

Huddersfield scored two goals in a minute to see off non-league opponents Dover at the Galpharm. Scott Arfield made it 1-0 after just seven minutes with Gary Roberts making it 2-0 a minute later.

Doncaster will get a trip to Molineux after a 2-2 draw with Wolves. Nenad Milijas put the Premiership side ahead seven minutes before half-time but the lead only lasted three minutes when Billy Sharp equalised. James Hayter then put Doncaster in front with still three minutes to play before half-time and put Wolves on the back foot. This time it was Wolves' turn to equalise and they did thirteen minutes into the second half via a penalty from Stephen Hunt. Wolves were reduced to ten men after 77 minutes when George Elokobi was given a straight red.

Blackpool were another Premiership team to be shown the door after losing to Southampton at St.Mary's. Lee Barnard put Saints ahead just eight minutes into the second half with substitute Guly Do Prado making it 2-0 with two minutes remaining.

There was a five goal thriller at the KC Stadium where Hull entertained Wigan. It was the Premiership side who took the lead through Mohammed Diame after 21 minutes. Callum McManaman made it 2-0 eleven minutes into the second half. Hull pulled a goal back after 74 minutes thanks to veteran Nick Barmby but Wigan restored their two goal lead just three minutes later with Diame getting his second. Barmby also scored a second but it didn't change the result in the dying minutes.

Nottingham Forest came from a goal down to beat Preston at Deepdale. Phil Brown's new side took the lead ten minutes before half-time through Darren Carter. Paul Anderson equalised for Forest five minutes into the second half with Luke Chambers winning the game just before stoppage time.

A sixth minute goal from Eunan O'Kane was enough to see Torquay beat Carlisle at Plainmoor. But the biggest shock of the day was in the tea-time kick-off at Stevenage as they managed to beat Newcastle. A wicked deflection off Williamson gave Borough the lead five minutes into the second half before Michael Bostwick doubled the lead five minutes later. It got worse for Newcastle when Tiote was shown a straight red after 71 minutes. It didn't seem to deter Newcastle and they pulled one back in the first of five added on minutes through Joey Barton. However Stevenage made sure of the win and it was Peter Winn who made it 3-1 just minutes later.

There was even a second round replay yesterday with Lincoln taking on Hereford, the winner will face Wycombe in the third round. Mathieu Manset gave Hereford the perfect start after four minutes but it was cancelled out just three minutes later through Jamie Clapham. Delroy Facey then made it 2-1 Lincoln after 24 minutes but this time it was Hereford who cancelled it out, Stuart Fleetwood equalising after 36 minutes. The Fleetwood made it 3-2 Hereford two minutes before half-time but the score was level again three minutes into the second half with a goal from Ashley Grimes. The winner came from Hereford with Manset getting his second goal of the game after 72 minutes but Hereford were reduced to ten in injury time when Ryan Green received a second yellow card.

Bad News For The Top Clubs

With Manchester United winning on Tuesday, the other Premiership contenders had to follow suit. But it didn't work out that way, meaning United scored a big win without even playing. Results also looked to have put four managers into trouble.

One of those managers is West Ham's Avram Grant. There has been no response to questions after West Ham's festive period became forgotten after a thrashing from Newcastle. The rout started eighteen minutes into the game when Leon Best opened his Premiership account. He was quick to add to his tally and did so six minutes before half-time. West Ham were three down before the whistle went because of an injury time goal from Kevin Nolan. Best then secured his hat-trick on the hour mark before Lovenkrands made it 5-0 three minutes later. The win sees Newcastle move up to eighth with West Ham still rooted at the bottom of the table.

The second of the four under fire managers is Gerard Houllier at Aston Villa, however the board have said his job is safe despite another loss. This time it was against Sunderland in a result that sees Villa drop into the bottom three. Nothing really happened until the 69th minute when Emile Heskey was unusually sent off, it was for violent conduct after pushing his hands into a defender. Sunderland took advantage and took the lead via Phil Bardsley ten minutes from time. The man count became level six minutes later when substitute Zenden received a second yellow card. Sunderland move up to sixth but the bad news is Meyler and Welbeck became the latest casualties on the injured list.

Chelsea's shocking run of form continued with another defeat that more than certainly puts Ancelotti at risk from the sack. The only goal came after five minutes when Jose Bosingwa scored into his own net to give Wolves the victory. The win moves Wolves out of the relegation zone.

There was a goalless bore draw at the Emirates. What's the point of having hundreds of millions of pounds if you can't buy ambition? It says it all when you see Arsenal's opponents Manchester City only three shots all game with none on target and clearly playing for a draw. Arsenal failed to take chances and were guilty of over playing. The only drama came in second half injury time when Sagna and Zabaleta squared up to each other and leaned in with their heads, both received red cards and will look to appeal. Zabaleta mat have a case but Sagna was definitely the more violent and shouldn't have the card rescinded.

Tottenham also received a blow to their league plight with a defeat to Everton. Louis Saha put Everton ahead after just three but Van Der Vaart equalised eight minutes later. The winner came fifteen minutes from time with a goal from Seamus Coleman.

Everton move level with rivals Liverpool after they suffered yet another defeat. Blackburn fans and Liverpool fans were singing 'you're getting sacked in the morning' to under fire Roy Hodgson. Blackburn opened the deadlock after 32 minutes when Olsson found the net. Benjani then doubled the lead six minutes later before scoring his second twelve minutes into the second half. It got worse for Liverpool when Gerrard missed a penalty but he did eventually score a consolation nine minutes from time. Blackburn now move into the top half above Stoke, in ninth.

The Reebok saw a dull first half but a little better second half as Bolton hosted Wigan. It took just nine minutes into the second half for the deadlock to be broken; Rodrigo giving Bolton the lead. Ronnie Stam earned Wigan a point with an equaliser ten minutes from time. Bolton stay seventh while Wigan move a point ahead of West Ham and level with Villa and Wolves.

United Exend Lead, Birmigham Snatch Late Win and Fulham Move to Thirteenth

With the FA Cup third round taking place this weekend, the Premiership decided to throw up a mid-week round of matches. Only three games took place on Tuesday night with the rest playing tonight.

Manchester United continued their unbeaten streak and went three points of ahead of nearest rivals City with a win over Stoke. United looked more comfortable than in recent performances and Javier Hernandez made it two goals in two games after 27 minutes. Nani sent in a cross which Hernandez flicked through his legs past defender and goalkeeper. Stoke put a temporary spanner in the works with a surprise goal from Dean Whitehead. He took full advantage of poor marking and was able to head home just five minutes into the second half. However United weren't to be denied the win and it came from a superb shot from Nani which went into the top corner after 62 minutes.

Bloomfield Road hosted its first Premiership game in over forty days as Blackpool hosted Birmingham. There was entertainment from the start with Matt Derbyshire and Cameron Jerome squandering glorious opportunities to give Birmingham the lead. Both teams also hit the woodwork on several occasions and another fantastic goalkeeping cameo from Foster kept Blackpool at bay for most of the match. The deadlock was broken after 24 minutes after Alexander Hleb was able to walk through the penalty area before slotting past Kingson. Blackpool probably deserved their equaliser after a good amount of pressure and it came from DJ Campbell, to score his fourth goal in four matches, after 68 minutes. Birmingham took all three points though with a goal from Scott Dann just before added time, there was a big appeal for offside but the officials were right to let the goal stand.

Fulham jumped up to thirteenth with a crucial home win over West Brom. It was a night to forget for West Brom Scott Carson as he had a bit of a shocker between the posts. Fulham took the lead just before half-time with what looked to be a stunner from Simon Davies, although replays showed it went through Scott Carson and really he should have saved it. It didn't get any better for Carson as a corner eleven minutes into the second half was met by Dempsey and found the net, Carson again could have done better. Brede Hangeland rounded the match off with a header from yet another corner after 65 minutes. West Brom are now sixteenth with most of the teams around them having a game in hand.

2011- Year of the Jackpot as Adrian Lewis Comes of Age

25 year old Adrian 'Jackpot' Lewis overcame the 'Flying Scotsman' Gary Anderson in one of the most entertaining World Championship finals ever. Anderson won the first leg of the match but Lewis led from then onto seal the match 7-5. Everyone knew it was going to be a special night, especially after Lewis nailed a nine darter in just the third leg to get everyone off their feet and singing his name. You have to give Anderson the up most of credit as he never gave up fighting and pushed Lewis all the way. They averaged about the same overall and scored similarly, Lewis was just about more consistent and hit the big numbers when needed to pressurise. Lewis stormed to a 3-1 lead with superior finishing, Anderson was finishing well on the three darters but his overall doubles was poor. They headed for a break and Anderson used it to rejuvenate himself and he powered back to 3-3. Usually this may have worried Lewis but after his first major final earlier in the season in Dublin, Lewis was undeterred and fought again to re-take the lead. Anderson needed to break the sets where Lewis threw first but every time the Scotsman had an opportunity Lewis quickly recovered to break back and keep the darts. As the match grew, Anderson looked to be getting more tired and ended up going 6-4 behind with Lewis looking likely to win it there and then. However Anderson managed to force another set and lost 7-5. This sets up an unbelievable line-up for the Premier League which starts February 10th, Taylor, Wade, Anderson and Lewis have all booked their places with the remaining four places to be decided with wild cards.

Darts World Championship - Semi-Finals

In the penultimate day at the Ally Pally, four remained in the bid to become Dart's World Champion. The first two to battle for a place in the final was Terry Jenkins and Gary Anderson. Gary Anderson has arguably played the best overall so far this tournament but it didn't deter Jenkins from taking the first set. With the semi-finals now first two six it surely meant a much bigger battle. It didn't look that way as Anderson knuckled down to wear Jenkins out by taking the next five sets to have a foot in the final. Jenkins won a consolation second set but Anderson was in no charitable mood and took the game 6-2 and score yet another 100+ average.

In the ten times that Phil Taylor has been beaten on television, seven of the victors have lost in the very next round. Unfortunately for Mark Webster, that's exactly what happened to him in the second semi-final against Adrian Lewis. The first three sets went with throw and all went to a deciding leg, with Lewis taking a 2-1 lead. The fourth set also went with throw but this time Webster won it 3-0 to level the match. The first crucial break came for Adrian Lewis as Webster started missing doubles, allowing Lewis to take a 4-2 lead. However Webster came back after the break and showed his courage to make it 4-4. Lewis took the crucial deciding leg in the ninth set to get to within one of victory. It was looking like it was going to go to a deciding set when Webster started the tenth set off with an eleven darter. But Lewis battled back to take the set 3-1 and win the match 6-4 to set up the final against Anderson.

Fireworks at the Bridge but the DW Fails to Ignite

The first Super Sunday of 2011 saw two very different games and maybe they should have been played the other way round. Super Sunday kicked off at Stamford Bridge where Chelsea had just won their first game in seven, hosting a Villa side that have still only won once under Gerard Houllier. The game, however, had everything a Premiership game should have; with six goals, two penalties, late goals, nine yellow cards and a whole heap of controversy. Referee Lee Mason seemed very card happy and despite Chelsea accumulating more fouls than Villa, only two Chelsea players were booked compared to Villa's seven and on reflection of the game some of the Chelsea players were lucky to escape. The main reason they did was lack of consistency from Mr. Mason. The first major talking point after 22 minutes when Florent Malouda went down in the penalty area under an aerial challenge. There were arguments for and against the award of a penalty but it mainly looked like the Frenchman was actually backing into James Collins, however Mason didn't see it that way and gave a penalty which Frank Lampard converted. The second penalty was awarded at the other end, five minutes from half-time; Michael Essien came from behind to bring down Ashley Young and the penalty was rightly awarded. Young stepped up to equalise before half-time.

Villa started the second half stronger and made it count just two minutes after the kick-off, Emile Heskey rising higher than Jeffrey Bruma to head past Cech to make it 2-1. From there Chelsea bombarded the Villa half but some fantastic saves from Friedel kept Villa ahead. That was until a shot from substitute Kalou was blocked by Friedel but the ball ran to Drogba who blasted past three defenders before finding the net, 2-2 with six minutes left. Chelsea then thought they had won the game when another excellent parry unfortunately fell to John Terry, the captain placed his shot like a striker and Chelsea were 3-2 ahead with only five minutes of stoppage time remaining. However the game had time for one more sting in the tail when an Albrighton free-kick was met by an unmarked Ciaran Clark to make it 3-3 and give Villa a well deserved point.

The other Super Sunday game was the DW Stadium where Wigan entertained Newcastle. After the mouth-watering action just witnessed at the Bridge, everyone was expecting, or hoping, this game to have even just half of the excitement as the previous game. It didn't materialise as Newcastle mostly dominated the game in midfield with Wigan not taking any of their numerous decent chances. The game was decided by a nineteenth minute goal; Barton's cross was met by Al Habsi but pressure from Lovenkrands saw the keeper spill it and the striker touched it onto the post where Shola Ameobi was on hand to tap it into the net. The win sees Newcastle enter the top half with Wigan loitering just a point from the relegation zone.