Hornets into drop zone following last-gasp defeat (From Watford Observer)

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Watford suffer fourth straight loss following injury-time goal at Hull City

5:10pm Saturday 22nd October 2011 in Match Reports

Watford are now in the Championship's bottom three after an injury-time strike from Robert Koren condemned them to a fourth straight defeat following a 3-2 loss at Hull City.

The Hornets had looked likely to end their losing run despite letting the lead slip on two occasions at the KC Stadium but a point was taken away from them in the fourth minute of time added on when the Slovenian midfielder fired in from the edge of the area.

The visitors had gone into the game at risk of being the first Watford side to fail to score in four successive league games since April 1997 but at least that spectre was banished in the 36th minute when James Chester turned a Mark Yeates free-kick into his own net.

Although Matty Fryatt equalised six minutes into the second half, the Hornets were soon back in the lead when Chris Iwelumo headed in his first goal for the club, with Yeates again the supplier.

The Hornets were again pegged back though, with Aaron Mclean converting from close range but they still looked on course to take a point until the dramatic conclusion.

Sean Dyche made two changes to the side that suffered a third straight defeat at Leicester City in midweek. Having been left out of the starting line-up for the first time this season, Marvin Sordell was restored at the expense of Joe Garner, while Yeates also came back into the line-up in place of injured loan signing Michael Kightly.

Both sides failed to make the most of a corner they each won in the opening three minutes and there was little in the way of goalmouth action until the 11th minute when Robert Brady came inside off the right flank but dragged a tame left-footed effort wide of the near post from 20 yards.

The opening 20 minutes were dull though, but the Hornets were keeping it tight at the back without really threatening when they ventured forward.

The hosts did have the ball in the net four minutes later when Corry Evans finished after Scott Loach had failed to hold on to a Liam Rosenior cross under pressure from Mclean but referee Gary Sutton had already penalised the Tigers striker for a foul.

Loach had to be watchful when Brady swung in a cross moments later but the visitors weren’t too far away with their first chance in the 31st minute when Adrian Mariappa headed Jonathan Hogg’s looping cross from the right narrowly over.

Tempers threatened to spill over three minutes later when Carl Dickinson and Brady got involved in a tangle on the touchline and after the Hornets’ left-back had angrily grabbed his opponent, both players were yellow carded.

The visitors thought they had taken the lead soon after when Troy Deeney’s miscued shot across goal was turned in from close range by John Eustace but it was ruled out for offside. Watford didn’t have long to wait though.

In the 36th minute they were awarded a free-kick on the left which was superbly swung in by Yeates and the ball was stabbed past Adriano Basso from inside the six-yard box, ending the Hornets’ three-match search for a goal. Although the stadium announcer gave the goal to Deeney, it was centre-half Chester who applied the decisive touch.

Deeney was involved again in first-half injury-time when he was booked for a late challenge on Rosenior but crucially the visitors were able to take the lead into the break.

Fryatt headed wide from a Tom Cairney corner two minutes after the restart but four minutes later Hull were level with their first on-target attempt of the game.

The move originated after Sordell had lost possession just inside the City half and the ball was worked to the left where Cairney’s loss cross towards the six-yard box was blocked by the stretching Eustace but the ball broke very kindly for Fryatt to stab past Loach and make it 1-1.

After Loach had made a straightforward stop from a Brady shot, a well-struck low drive from Sordell forced Basso to push the ball round his near post. That corner came to nothing but after the ball had been cleared for a throw, Yeates received it on the right and did very well to beat his man before standing up an inviting cross to the far post where Iwelumo rose to head home his first goal for the Hornets and put them into a 2-1 lead.

It was an advantage that was to last only ten minutes though, as Rosenior was allowed too much space on the right side of the area and his pull back was bundled in by Mclean.

The scorer was booked soon after for a foul on Eustace but Watford nearly went in front for a third time when they found themselves four-on-three from a counter-attack but with options right and left, Yeates went alone and hit a rising right-footed drive that clipped the bar as it went over.

After Jack Hobbs had headed a corner wide, Craig Forsyth was introduced at the expense of Deeney, while Dele Adebola came on for Brady.

Watford had another good opportunity in the 79th minute, again from a Yeates set-piece, but unfortunately for the visitors, Eustace directed a header straight at Basso.

But the Watford skipper was a lucky man with six minutes when, after tangling with Evans tight to the touchline, he appeared to kick out at the Hull midfielder. Although it happened right in front of the fourth official, who the referee then consulted, no action was taken against Eustace.

Sordell made way for Garner with a couple of minutes left but the last laugh went to the hosts in the fourth minute of injury time.

There didn’t seem to be too much on when Koren received the ball around 35 yards but he was allowed to advance before firing a right-footed shot past Loach from the edge of the area to snatch a dramatic victory.

Hull City: Basso; Rosenior, Chester, Hobbs, Dudgeon; Brady (Adebola 76), Evans (McKenna 86), Koren, Cairney; Mclean, Fryatt. Not used: McShane, Harper and Gulacsi.

Watford: Loach; Doyley, Mariappa, Mirfin, Dickinson; Yeates, Eustace, Hogg, Deeney (Forsyth 76); Iwelumo, Sordell (Garner 88). Not used: Hodson, Gilmartin, and Buaben.

Bookings: Dickinson for a scuffle with Brady (34); Brady for a scuffle with Dickinson (34); Deeney for a foul on Rosenior (45); Mclean for a foul on Eustace (70); Eustace for a foul on Dudgeon (90).

Attendance: 18,324.

Referee: Gary Sutton.

Comments(114)

'illingdon 'orn says...
5:12pm Sat 22 Oct 11

Oh dear oh dear!!