AIDY BOOTHROYD'S (r)evolution continued with a nail-biting 2-1 victory against Norwich City thanks to two quite awesome goals from strike partnership Marlon King and Ashley Young.
It was a pulsating encounter which had the Vicarage Road faithful belting out 'Yellow Army' from three sides of the ground as full-time approached. Nail-biting because brilliant Watford before the break turned to shaky and unsure Watford after it, put under pressure which turned into something of a seige on Ben Foster's goal in the moments before the end.
But the fans had already fed off a wonderful first half - as if drawing their second-half energy from it - and seemed as determined as the players not to be denied yet another Championship win.
Ultimately, two 'Goal of the Season' contender strikes from King (six for the season) and Young (five this year) meant that the Golden Boys' superior finishing proved the difference between the sides but, while the reflections will be about a game of two halves, Boothroyd's boys could have been out of sight by the break.
All seemed set fair for another comfortable three points at half-time. Watford were supremely dominant having played magnificently in a first half which could have justifiably seen them lead by four or five goals.
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Paul Devlin looks for passing options |
That they only led 2-0 was not to take away from some breathless, exciting play at times. But it was only 2-0 therefore some small glimmer of hope for the visitors.
Nigel Worthington wasted no time in introducing two half-time subs and, while ultimately they didn't alter the result, Norwich's much more positive approach post-interval provided them with the lion's share of the chances and forced the Hornets, unusually for this season, into a more introverted approach - something the manager admitted to being less than pleased during in his post-match press conference.
However, come the 95th minute when Mr Armstrong finally emitted the telling peep on his whistle, Vicarage Road simply exploded with relief and jubilation as the Golden Boys extended their unbeaten League run to seven games - that's all bar the season-opener at home to Preston either won or drawn.
Unsurprisingly, the gaffer made no changes whatsoever to the 16 named for the win at Stoke three days previously. Heady days indeed when neither Darius Henderson or skipper Gavin Mahon appear to be being missed, such is the buoyancy running throughout the squad. Interesting in fact to see if the manager would have "changed a winning team" as he's already done this term had one or both of those senior figures been fit.
So Marlon King and Ashley Young were again up top and the fledgling strike partnership were - like at Stoke - both to register. But this time in emphatic and brilliant fashion.
It was a muted opening to what promised to be an entertaining encounter, Norwich paying Watford perhaps too much respect in sitting off and adopting what might be termed a typical 'away team' approach at the start.
But the deadlock was broken in spectacular style on the 12-minute mark when Marlon King produced his sixth goal of the season, right out of the top drawer. Clarke Carlisle's long ball forward found the hitman peeling off marker Craig Fleming. Having taken the ball instantly on the drop, he eased past the City skipper before a scorching drive from a tight angle five yards from the goal-line was just too powerful and accurate for the England international keeper.
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Jordan Stewart tussles with Jurgen Colin |
And eight minutes later it should really have been two - and Matthew Spring knew it, holding his head in his hands as he turned away from missing a gilt-edged headed chance. Neat football from the Hornets saw the ball run for Paul Devlin wide right. The winger wasted no time in crossing to the far post where Spring, having gambled on the destiny of the cross, thumped a eight-yard free header tamely wide of Green's goal.
If it seems as though the report's only mentioning goal-mouth incident after goal-mouth incident, that's in truth because the game was exploding into life with a jolt as Watford found ways past a cautious approach from Nigel Worthington's visitors.
It was 2-0 shortly after Spring's near miss with another goal of the highest quality. King found space through the centre to turn and advance unchallenged before touching the ball off to Young on the corner of the box. Hard to predict what was about to happen, however. Young rode the first tackle, nipped inside the second then unleashed a quite stunning left-footer from 17 yards for his fifth of the campaign, in past Green's dive before he barely had time to react. Brilliant!
Understandably, this sparked a period of confident, near arrogant possession football from the Golden Boys - apparently keen to see the game off before the break.
Four minutes from the end of an utterly dominant first 45 minutes - with the Soccer AM 'Easys' - ringing round the Rookery, a quick free-kick nearly led to a Hornets' third. Young the supplier of the chance this time, rolling across to Malky Mackay who side-footed first time only narrowly wide of Green's right-hand post.
And it nearly was all over just a minute from half-time when Mackay's bouncing ball forward got the better of the desperate leap of Norwich centre-half Jason Shackell. It dropped nicely for King - who'd anticipated the error and was perfectly placed 12 yards out - but his snap-volley of the dropping ball came back off the goal post into the grateful arms of Green who was beaten all ends up by the quick-fire attempt.
Far from slowing, the game maintained its tempo - not least in fact because Worthington introduced Paul McVeigh for the more defensive Jim Brennan and on-loan debutant Calum Davenport for the woefully off-form youngster Jason Shackell in the centre of the Canaries' back-line.
While not yielding clear-cut chances immediately, those changes did lead to a change in emphasis for the game, which had been totally and utterly dominated by Boothroyd's boys before the interval. City were using McVeigh as a useful foraging outlet on their left and his turn of foot forced
After Young had brushed the side-netting on 47 and Carlisle had flicked on dangerously from a 50th-minute corner, Norwich scored a goal somewhat out of the blue - but hard to say against the run of play which had evened out thanks largely to City's changed shape and more gung-ho approach. Spurs loanee Dean Marney, afforded space for a long-range shot, took the option and struck with venom from 35 yards. Ben Foster, having to act seriously for the first time on the night - will be disappointed to have beaten the ball back out in front of him rather than to one side of the goal. It was reminiscent of Romain Larrieu's parry to Anthony McNamee's shot at Plymouth which gave King a rebound tap-in. This time Kevin Lisbie, a recent loan from Charlton, was City's King, reacting quickest to the rebound chance to stroke home past Foster.
King had decent penalty claims ignored by Berkshire whistle-blower Mr Armstrong at the second half's mid-way point. From a lofted free-kick forward, he was wrestled in uncompromising manner by the lanky Davenport as the pair vied for supremacy only eight yards from Green's goal.
A nervous period, from the hour mark, for Watford who couldn't really get a decent string of passes going or, failing that, at least an extended few minutes in City's half to regain the earlier exuberance which engendered a buzzing Vicarage Road atmosphere and a fully-deserved two-goal interval lead.
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Anthony McNamee makes life hard for Youssef Safri |
In fact the crowd, sensing the players' anxiety, stoked up the volume again. But it was City back on the offensive again with Marney trying his luck with another long-range pot-shot. This time well over, but Foster wasn't happy he'd been afforded the room to have another go.
Ashton's header from a corner was brilliantly turned aside by Foster, not knowing that the flag had gone up for off-side and the Man United stopper was in fine form into injury-time, arcing back at full stretch to deny Marney, the most potent threat for City all evening.
The harder Watford's players tried, the louder the Vicarage Road faithful roared. And they would have taken the roof off had sub Hameur Bouazza got on the end of King's good work two minutes into stoppage time. He just missed out but with three sides of the ground literally bouncing up and down with a raucous chorus of 'Yellow Army', the final whistle brought delight and relief in equal measure for the Hornets' fans who cheered their team into second place tonight.
Line-ups
Watford: Foster; Chambers, Mackay, Carlisle (c), Stewart; Devlin (Doyley 61), Blizzard (Bangura 61), Spring, McNamee (Bouazza 78); King, Young. Subs not used: Chamberlain (GK), DeMerit.
Norwich: Green; Colin (Doherty 80), Fleming (c), Shackell (Davenport HT), Drury; Marney, Safri, Hughes, Brennan (McVeigh HT); Lisbie, Ashton. Subs not used: Jarrett, Gallacher (GK).
Ref: Paul Armstrong (Berkshire). Att: 13,502 (1,930 Norwich fans).
By Richard Walker at Vicarage Road
