The Premier League game between Stoke City and Blackburn Rovers at the Britannia Stadium on Saturday Feb 6 2010.
They say that good things come in threes and Stoke City certainly confirmed the old adage in some style against Blackburn Rovers.
For the fourth time in five home games the Potteries club secured a treble of goals while also claiming their most emphatic victory in the top flight in this their second season in the Premier League. Blackburn were woeful and reduced to 10 men when Chris Samba was dismissed for second yellow card on the hour, the scoreline eventually flattered the visitors who could have conceded far more.
The figure three was also significant for Tony Pulis who was at the Stoke helm for the 300th time and he was able to celebrate the occasion as his team climbed above Blackburn en route to achieving the mid-table sanctuary the Delilah-chanting fans crave most of all.
Chances are that this milestone match resembled the previous 299 during which Pulis was in charge but there is little doubt that, like their manager, Stoke's formulaic manner of winning football matches has stood the test of time.
Few will surprised that it was from a set piece that Danny Higginbotham volleyed them ahead, a half clearance from Liam Lawrence's corner pounced upon by the captain whose crisp connection flashed into the net through a body of players.
No mystery either when a Rory Delap long throw caused the required disruption in the Blackburn defence that saw Matthew Etherington retrieve the loose ball and centre for Mamady Sidibe to bundle the ball over the line at the far post in first half stoppage time.
Samba's sending-off, for tugging back Ricardo Fuller after the Congo centre half had been booked in the first half, invited glimpses of an endangered species in these parts รข€“ the Stoke City passing game.
Their most accomplished performer of this somewhat alien concept is Etherington and after Paul Robinson had denied headers from Ryan Shawcross and Fuller with fine saves, the former West Ham United winger weaved his way across the face of goal, exchanged passes with Lawrence and dummied delightfully before his precise left foot shot concluded the scoring.
On the day Stoke chose to honour the Potteries' and their own most famous football son, Sir Stanley Matthews, it was an effort that the legendary Wizard of the Dribble would have admired.
No comments:
Post a Comment