The look of the Irish
Robbie Brady: The winger scored the winner as Hull boosted their play-off hopes with a 1-0 victory at Reading. A tight game looked destined to finish goalless until Brady, on loan at Hull from Manchester United, ran on to a through ball and slipped it past Reading goalkeeper Adam Federici after 66 minutes.
Alan Lee: The striker sparked the revival as Huddersfield came from 2-0 down to win 3-2 at home to Brentford. Huddersfield were trailing 2-0 when Lee bundled home a goal to halve the deficit four minutes before half time. It wasn’t a thing of beauty — Brentford claimed Lee had barged into their goalkeeper — but it gave Huddersfield the impetus to complete a stunning fightback.
Owen Garvan: The midfielder looked set to be Crystal Palace’s matchwinner on Saturday until a dramatic final five minutes which saw Blackpool score twice to snatch victory. Garvan put the Eagles in front with a penalty after 27 minutes but they couldn’t hang for a victory that would have significantly boosted their play-off aspirations.
Pat Fenlon: The former Bohemians boss had a difficult day at the office as his Hibernian side crashed to a 3-2 home defeat to St Johnstone. Hibs twice came from behind and looked set to clinch a point but three minutes from time they conceded a third goal to ensure they finished the day empty-handed. To add to their woes basement club Dunfermline won to move to within a point of Hibs in the relegation battle.
Greg Cunningham: The defender’s afternoon came to a premature end on Saturday after he was forced off injured after just 23 minutes in Nottingham Forest’s game at West Ham. Despite Forest’s travails Cunningham, who is currently on loan from Manchester City, has been in terrific form and manager Steve Cotterill will hope the 20-year-old’s lay-off will be a brief one.
James McCarthy: A moment of madness from the Wigan midfielder gifted QPR a goal in Saturday’s relegation six-pointer. The game was scoreless when, under little pressure, McCarthy inexplicably handled in the area after a QPR corner. Rangers scored the resulting penalty and went on to claim a crucial 3-1 win, a result that left Wigan rooted at the foot of the table.
