VILLA EARN POINT IN SIX-GOAL THRILLER

By Ryan Ghee
February 13 2006

Aston Villa were made to work hard for a point at Craven Cottage as they had to come from behind three times to earn a share of the spoils.

Prior to the match, Fulham had won five home league games on the bounce and it looked as if the trend would continue when they took the lead on three occasions through a Brian McBride brace and a Heidar Helguson penalty.

However, Villa refused to accept defeat and pegged their hosts back on each occasion with Luke Moore getting on the scoresheet, before Liam Ridgewell became an unlikely hero with a second half double of his own.

The match was delayed by ten minutes before kick-off after referee Richard Beeby injured himself in the warm-up which meant fourth official Andy D'Urso had to take his place on the chilly night in London.

Despite the delay, neither side seemed affected and after only six minutes, Thomas Sorensen was called into action to deny Fulham's Sylvain Legwinski.

Just three mintes later, Luke Moore, again preferred upfront instead of Juan Pablo Angel, could have given Villa the lead but he wasted Baros' neat pass as he blasted his effort high into the stand.

However, with only 13 minutes on the clock, it was the hosts who took the lead when leading scorer Brian McBride put Fulham ahead with his seventh goal of the campaign.

Tomasz Radzinski raced down the left wing before crossing a pin-point ball to the American international, who made no mistake from 12 yards as he powered a header past Thomas Sorensen.

After falling behind early on, the visitors stepped their game up a gear and after 29 minutes of the match, Milan Baros got in behind the Fulham defence before laying the ball to Moore who slotted home to get Villa back on level terms.

The hosts, however, took only three minutes to regain the lead as Mark Delaney, who earlier in the day expressed his desire to remain at Villa Park, was harshly adjudged to have fouled Radzinski in the area.

Heidar Helguson, for the second time in as many matches, stepped up from the spot and cooly passed it into the net past the helpless Thomas Sorensen.

O'Leary's men immediately went in search of an equaliser and three minutes after falling behind, Gavin McCann rattled the Fulham woodwork as his effort bounced back off the post following Milner's whipped delivery.

The Villans failed to find the net again before the break and at half time, feeling slightly hard done by, they went in facing a 2-1 defecit.

The second half started as brightly as the first as Villa continued their search for an equaliser and Fulham looked to catch their opponents on the break.

Ten minutes into the half, this very nearly happened as Helguson raced through on the Villa goal only to be denied by the brave Sorensen who dived at the striker's feet to keep Villa within touching distance of the Cottagers.

With an hour on the clock, the Villans clawed their back onto level terms for the second time in the match as Liam Ridgewell scored a rare goal.

The centre-back was first to react to Milner's low delivery and with Crossley committed to the cause, the defender beat the keeper to the ball and scrambled it into the net from close-range.

The away side were still celebrating their equaliser when they found themselves fall behind for the third time in the match.

Just 57 seconds after being pegged back, Luis Boa Morte found McBride with his left wing cross and the striker looped a header over the Villa goalkeeper to score his second goal of the evening, and his eighth of the season.

With the shock of the third Fulham goal settling in, Villa again pushed forward but Fulham seemed content to sit back and try to hold on for their sixth successive home league win.

With Villa starting to apply relentless pressure, the Fulham back line started to look vulnerable and with 15 minutes remaining, Eirik Bakke almost scored his first goal for the club, but was denied by the crossbar with Mark Crossley clearly beaten.

Just a minute later though, Villa did manage to find their third equaliser of the evening.

With James Milner the provider once again, Ridgewell was on hand for the second time to poke the ball in from just a yard out.

After the goal, Villa seemed reluctant to push so many men forward and they were nearly punished in the final attack of the match as McBride broke through the Villa defence only to send his effort wide of the far post.