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Five Spices From Chairman Damon

Log on to this page after each round of games for the lowdown on how each team fared. He’s harsh, but fair and you won’t find anything quite like it elsewhere. Enjoy our Chairman’s pithy post match analysis of the overpaid heroes and goats that make up the “Happy Band” of the EPL. If you're in the prawn sandwich and skim latte club, or part of the "Dippy Darling" brigade this column is not for you!!

Who's hot? Who's not? Who's left their bottle at home? Watch this space carefully as the season unwinds.

Who was hot before?  Visit Damon's 2008/09 season archives to find out!

Previous Analysis:

Round Seventeen.... Round Sixteen.... Round Fifteen.... Round Fourteen.... Round Thirteen

Snow Beats League Leaders

 

Arsenal P - Stoke City P (Postponed due to weather)

 

Birmingham City P - Newcastle United P (Postponed due to weather)

 

Blackburn Rovers 1 - West Ham United 1

West Ham grab take a deserved point at Ewood Park but stay marooned on the bottom of the table. With Blackburn still looking to regroup after the loss of Sam Allardyce, the Hammers could have been expected to take the game to them but they started cagily and the first half passed largely without incident. Six minutes into the second half, fourth-string keeper Ruud Boffin pulled off an exceptional stop to deny Ryan Nelsen, only to see the ball deflect back past him off the centre-back's hopefully swinging knee. The goal finally stirred the Londoners into life and they started to get a grip on the game. Matthew Upson came close to restoring parity, when his low effort cracked back off the foot of the post, but the equaliser came after Scott Parker's surging run ended with the ball falling to Junior Stanislas, who bent his shot into the bottom corner. Rovers by that time had lost both Christopher Samba and substitute Phil Jones to injury but thought David Dunn had got the winner until referee Mike Dean blew for a Nelsen foul in the build up. Defeat would have been harsh on the visitors, however, though a failure to win may mean manager Avram Grant now has two games in which to stay in a job.

 

Blackpool P - Tottenham Hotspur P (Postponed due to weather)

 

Chelsea P - Manchester United P (Postponed due to weather)

 

Liverpool P - Fulham P (Postponed due to weather)

 

Manchester City 1 - Everton 2 

City miss the chance to go top as they crash at home to Everton. Things started to go wrong for the home side after just four minutes, when Seamus Coleman crossed Victor Anichebe's flick-on across goal, where the ubiquitous Tim Cahill headed past Joe Hart. Hopes of a swift response were dashed fifteen minutes later, after Anichebe set off on a surging run down the right and Cahill laid off the striker's cross for Leighton Baines to curl into the net. Pablo Zabaleta had been off the pitch getting treatment when the second goal was scored and returned with his head heavily patched-up to lead the Citizens' response. Despite his best efforts and chances for David Silva, Vincent Kompany, Mario Balotelli and Alexander Kolarov, the home side went into the interval still two goals adrift. The game seemed to turn on them on the hour when Anichebe saw a second yellow card for a thoughtless lunge on the battered Zabaleta and ten minutes later, they'd reduced the arrears when Yaya Toure's thrash deflected in off Phil Jagielka. With the Toffees on the back foot and defending manfully, Balotelli saw an effort come back off the post before being denied by Tim Howard, with the keeper also denying Carlos Tevez on the follow-up. The American was in good form and also produced saves from Silva and Tevez again, before Kolo Toure evened up the numbers with a second yellow card of his own and the Sky Blue storm passed. Everton now find themselves closer to the top half of the table than the relegation zone for the first time in a good while.

 

Sunderland 1 - Bolton Wanderers 0

Sunderland move up to sixth after a good home win against in-form Bolton. Wanderers' confidence is sky high at the moment and they started well, only to find themselves behind just after the half-hour. Jordan Henderson's cross to the far post looked to have been overhit but Darren Bent did well to pull the ball out of the air and send in a powerful drive. Jussi Jaaskelainen got across to keep the striker's effort out but Danny Wellbeck dived in to head the ball back past the keeper. The Trotters could well have gone in level at the break but for Craig Gordon's stunning, point-blank, one-handed save to tip Zat Knight's goalbound effort over the bar. Owen Coyle's side continued to push after the interval and Sunderland were fortunate not to lose Lee Cattermole - surely the most consistently bone-headed individual in recent football history - after another typically ill-thought-out lunge on Johan Elmander when already on a yellow card. As it was, the Black Cats had the best chance of the half, when the normally-reliable Bent totally miscued his shot in front of goal and Wellbeck, following up, could only bend his shot onto the outside of the post. Substitute Ivan Klasnic and centre-back Gary Cahill both had late chances to grab a point for the away side but the Mackems held on to end the weekend just goal difference behind Spurs.

 

West Bromwich Albion P - Wolverhampton Wanderers P (Postponed due to weather)

 

Wigan Athletic P - Aston Villa P (Postponed due to weather)