<% Dim oCs, oRs, strSQL set oCs = server.createobject("ADODB.Connection") oCs.Open "Driver={Microsoft Excel Driver (*.xls)}; DBQ=" & Server.MapPath("/season/02-03/data") & "/premtable.xls;" strSQL = "SELECT * FROM [Summary$] ORDER BY Pos ;" Set oRs = oCs.Execute(strSQL) %> ToffeeWeb: West Brom v Everton, Premiership Season 2002-03
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 FA Premiership (33); The Hawthorns, Birmingham; Saturday 12 April, 2003; 3:00pm
   Balis (pen:17')
 
 
Attendance: 27,039
Halftime: 0-0

Facts
Reports
Weir (23')
Campbell (45')

Referee: Steve Bennett
 

Match Preview

West Brom came out of the gate with determination to give David Moyes's unchanged team an early fright, hitting the bar after 5 mins.  The Baggies continued to dominate, with Jason Koumas running the show, as if he had some point to prove...  On 15 mins, Koumas had an excellent shot that bobble in front of Wright, who was able to smother the danger.

Then, another attack, and West Brom were given a penalty when Alan Stubbs was penalized for handball but there were strong claims by the Everton players and David Moyes that he was pushed.  Balis sent Wright the wrong way, and the appearance of a banana skin on the pitch seemed an ominous omen for Everton.  

But a few minutes later, a brilliant in-swinging corner from Mark Pembridge beat the defence and Everton scored a quick and vital equalizer.  Weir appeared to have scored with a glancing header but slo-mo replays clearly show Weir missed the ball completely. 

So who scored the first goal in this game?  Campbell originally got credit and then Hoult was credited with an own goal as the replays clearly showed him punch it ahead of Campbell. However, the official FA confirmation is that our first goal in this match was credited to David Weir, even though Weir's flick-on actually missed his head completely!  Campbell and Hoult went up for the ball together with Campbell forcing the vital touch off goalkeeper Hoult.

It was really a combination of Campbell's head and Hoult's fist that powered the ball into the net.  Our inclination was to give it to SuperKev for without his presence it would not have gone in, but the FA Dubious Goa

ls Panel thought differently, crediting it at first to the West Brom goalie, whose fist was in front of Campbell's head, and thus responsible for directing the ball into the net...  but hen they had a change of mind and gave it instead to Weir.  All square with all to play for.

The official line is that the disputed goals panel decided that Weir made contact with his [attempted] flick-on and as the header was deemed to be on target, the fact that Hoult punched it into the net makes no difference, apparently, and Davie Weir is the official scorer of the first goal

Campbell then got on the end of a great Yobo cross, and fired home a perfect header but the linesman was flagging for a very marginal offside.  It all kicked off in one of the stands at that point, with some serious fighting occurring.

Yobo was playing well and coming forward a lot, being a significant factor in the extraordinary number of corners won by Everton.  But this was a real end-to-end humdinger, with West Brom still making some good forward runs and penetrating attacks, Lee Hughes completely missing an open goal in one instance.

Meanwhile on the sidelines, David Moyes was getting into it big time with the fourth official, and the ref finally coming over to show him a red card and banish him to the stands for ‘foul and abusive language and improper behaviour’.  Shocking!

Lee Hughes later fired in another good set-up across the Everton goal but Ronnie Wallwork was a yard short and could not convert another glorious chance.  More corners for Everton, an Weir with another glorious header but it was fractionally wide.  Then Rooney danced in front of Hoult, waiting for the perfect moment to slide the ball in for Kevin Campbell to score.  

Rooney managed to get himself booked stupidly for appearing to kick the ball away after he was adjudged to be offside.  Then, a bad back-pass that Rooney pounced on, but his first-time toe-poke went into the side netting.

Weir was pole-axed by a Dichio elbow in midfield but the ref allowed play to go on and West Brom nearly scored again.  Rooney stayed well involved, playing some great moves as Everton pressed but failed to confirm their superiority with more goals, and always looked a uncharacteristically vulnerable in defence. 

The last quarter of the game degenerated somewhat, and was disrupted by a string of substitutions that included Duncan Ferguson getting another 5 mins of football.

West Brom nearly got another penalty in the last few minutes, the ref giving a free-kick right on the edge of the Everton penalty area but Koumas could only drive the ball into the Everton wall and away to safety.

A vital must-win game result secured for Everton, but only through hard graft yet again as Everton battle to stay the course with the other European hopefuls, all of whom won today.  

Photo kindly provided by Everton FC
Kevin Campbell: On the mark after a confident set-up from Wayne Rooney


West Brom v Everton:
Prior League Games
 Overall  
 West Brom 35
 Everton 14
 Draws 17
 Premiership  
 West Brom -
 Everton -
 Draws -
 Last Time:

West Brom 0-3 Everton (1985-86) 



Premiership Scores
Saturday 12Apr
Birmingham 2-0 Sunderland
Blackburn 1-0 Charlton
Chelsea 1-0 Bolton
Leeds Utd 2-2 Tottenham
Liverpool 2-0 Fulham
Man City 0-0 Middlesbro'
Newcastle 2-6 Man United
West Brom 1-2 Everton
West Ham 2-2 Aston Villa
Wednesday 16 Apr
Arsenal 2-2 Man Utd
 


Match Facts
 West Bromwich Albion  (4-4-2)
 Blue & white shirts, white shorts, white socks
Everton   (4-4-2; 80': 4-3-3)
 Black shirts, black shorts, black socks
  Hoult
Balis
Clement
McInnes (82' Dobie)
Wallwork
Dichio
Johnson
Gregan (c)
Sigurdsson
Koumas
Hughes

Subs not used:  Murphy,  Chambers, Udeze, Lyttle

Yellow Cards: Sigurdsson (38'), 
McInnes (45')

Red Cards: —
Wright
Yobo
Weir (c)
Stubbs
Unsworth
Watson (80' Ferguson)
Gravesen (66' Gemmill)
Carsley
Pembridge (75' Naysmith)
Rooney
Campbell

Subs not used: Gerrard, Li Tie

Yellow Cards: Gravesen (63'),
Rooney (53')

Red Cards: —


Unavailable:

Injured: Hibbert, Pistone
Recovering: Rodrigo
On Loan: Clarke, McLeod, Nyarko
 
Match Reports

Everton Web Sites
ToffeeWeb Match Summary
EvertonFC.com Match Report
When Skies Are Grey Match Report
Blue Kipper Match Report
Everton Fans' Reports
None Filed Match Report
Links to Other Media Reports
Electronic Telegraph Match Report
BBC Sport Match Report
4 the Game Match Report
Sky Sports Match Report
Sporting Life Match Report
SoccerNet Match Report
The Observer Match Report
The Guardian Match Report
The Independent Match Report
The Times Match Report
Liverpool Echo Match Report
Daily Post Match Report
Premiership Table
Pos Team Pts
1 Man Utd 71
2 Arsenal 68
3 Newcastle 61
4 Chelsea 60
5 Everton 56
6 Liverpool 55
7 Blackburn 52
8 Tottenham 47
9 Middlesbrough 46
10 Charlton 46
11 Southampton 45
12 Man City 42
13 Leeds 38
14 Aston Villa 38
15 Fulham 38
16 Birmingham 38
17 Bolton 35
18 West Ham 32
19 West Brom 21
20 Sunderland 19
After 16 Apr 2003


Match Preview

On with the show.  The Moyes bandwagon rolls into the Hawthorns on Saturday — when did we last play on a Saturday? — and it is essential that we don't allow it to get entangled.  After a superb 3 points against the Geordies, we cannot let complacency get the better of us.  Blackburn's comprehensive 4-0 hammering of Fulham on Monday night means that there is still plenty to do before we can celebrate a guaranteed European spot.  This one will likely go to the wire, boys... but then, what else can we expect with our beloved Blues?

West Brom are simply awaiting the final curtain to a season that has not got going for them.  Attempting to take a prudent route through the financial mire, they hamstrung their excellent coach (Megson) and forced him to take 1st Division journeymen on a Premiership ramble.  To their great credit, they have not been hammered at any time, though the 3-0 defeat to Boro last week suggests tiring legs and dropping heads...  Let's hope so!

They do have an element of quality in their side.  Russell Hoult has (admittedly ridiculously) been linked with the England squad; Jason Roberts and Jason Koumas — both linked with Everton from time to time — may well jump ship and stay in the Premiership when they rest drift away, but overall they are first division quality.  Goals have been hard to come by and a damning stat is that they have averaged less than a goal a game at home (0.8 per game if you are interested!).

However, our narrow 1-0 win at Goodison should be enough to ensure that focus is maintained.  You can take nothing for granted in this Premiership.

Our team?  I would have thought the same starting 11 again but Moyes may want to try and get Li Tie on to the pitch which may see Gravesen dropped.  Rooney and Campbell is a cert and at the back I can't see any changes — whisper it quietly, but we are actually down to bare bones there.

I'd like to dream and would love to see Moyes have Osman on the bench so that he could consider bringing him on later on in the game if it is looking safe.  He is having a great season for our reserves but not really getting a look-in in the first team.  It does become difficult as the team improves to give the kids a chance but, as a left footer with a degree of pace, he must be worth looking at?

We should batter them but we probably won't!  2-0 would be a creditable result and another Rooney gem — you wouldn't bet against it, would you?

BlueForEver

Lee Doyle



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