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West Bromwich
Albion completed a remarkable last day escape from relegation on
15th May 2005, a day that will live just as long in the memory of
Albion fans as 21st April 2002 and 18th April 2004. But that was
just the end of the long and winding road that began some nine months
previously.
Hopes and fears
Back in August 2004, Albion fans looked forward to the new season
with genuine optimism. Lord Gary had made some useful acquisitions
including Jonathan Greening and the mercurial Nwankwo Kanu and,
before the window was closed, there was the exciting prospect of
a genuine goalscorer joining the ranks when Robert Earnshaw joined
for a record £3 million.
By October, it had all gone horribly wrong. Megson's tactics were
at times questionable, at others unfathomable. With Clement and
Haas playing in central midfield, defensive football was abound,
and the result was just nine goals in the first eleven games, just
one win and an ignominious Carling Cup exit at the hands of Colchester
United. That eleventh game at Palace was the final straw. Jonathan
Greening had been Albion's most consistent player but found himself
dropped and Albion were already 2-0 down when Megson brought him
on after just 24 minutes.
The end of one era..
After effectively admitting that he had lost the dressing room and
then announcing that he would not stay at the Hawthorns beyond the
end of the season, Megson had ensured his own demise. The chairman
was left with little choice but to show him the door.
Although his departure was unpleasant, Albion fans will always be
grateful to Gary Megson for what he achieved at West Bromwich Albion.
His contribution to the unbelievable turnaround in the club's fortunes
over the last five years was nothing short of monumental, and it
will never be forgotten.
...and the start of another?
Of course, Jeremy Peace had the unenviable task of selecting a new
manager - the decision had to be the right one, and it had to be
made quickly. The early signs were that it would be a straight race
between Glenn Hoddle and Gordon Strachan. It is unclear whether
either was offered the job, but neither was appointed as, after
two matches under the control of Frank Burrows, it was former playing
legend, Bryan Robson, that was unveiled as the new man at the helm.
It was a controversial appointment that didn't go down well with
all Albion fans. My thoughts at the time were more positive than
negative as I thought his record at Middlesbrough was very understated.
Some, of course, had never forgiven his defection to Man Utd in
1981, but if we forgave the man responsible, we could surely forgive
Robbo - after all, you can't say that it was a bad move for him
in hindsight.
Minor encouragement turns to despair
As fate would have it, Robson's first game in charge was against
his old club and, had it not been for the miss of the century by
Kanu, he would have secured is first point as Albion boss. As it
was, he had to wait a week when a late equaliser from Robert Earnshaw
gave the Baggies an unlikely point at Highbury. Unfortunately, it
was only a brief high. After losing comfortably to Man Utd and then
heartbreakingly to Portsmouth, the inept display against Charlton
was just a taster of what was to come against Birmingham and Liverpool.
Albion had the "bottom at Christmas" curse and sections of the supporters
were calling for Robbo's head. Robson had been nothing if not fair
to the whole squad. Players such as Cosmin Contra and Artim Sakiri
who had been ignored by Megson got their chances, and though the
last six weeks of the year were painful for Baggies fans, the lessons
that Robson learned in that period were ultimately responsible for
the improvements we saw in the New Year.
After the humiliation by Liverpool on Boxing Day, we were exactly
halfway through the season. The bottom of the table looked like
this:
|
| Pos |
|
P |
W |
D |
L |
F |
A |
W |
D |
L |
F |
A |
GD |
Pts |
| 15 |
Fulham |
19 |
3 |
1 |
5 |
9 |
16 |
2 |
2 |
6 |
11 |
16 |
-12 |
18 |
| 16 |
Blackburn Rovers |
19 |
1 |
7 |
2 |
12 |
16 |
1 |
3 |
5 |
6 |
16 |
-14 |
16 |
| 17 |
Norwich City |
19 |
2 |
4 |
4 |
12 |
17 |
0 |
5 |
4 |
5 |
17 |
-17 |
15 |
| 18 |
Crystal Palace |
19 |
2 |
2 |
6 |
8 |
12 |
1 |
3 |
5 |
11 |
18 |
-11 |
14 |
| 19 |
Southampton |
19 |
2 |
6 |
2 |
13 |
13 |
0 |
2 |
7 |
5 |
18 |
-13 |
14 |
| 20 |
West Bromwich Albion |
19 |
1 |
4 |
5 |
7 |
19 |
0 |
3 |
6 |
8 |
22 |
-26 |
10 |
There was little doubt amongst the pundits, and, if I'm honest,
most Baggies fans, that Albion were doomed. Just one win all season,
four points adrift with a goal difference nine in arrears of the
next worse. It was hopeless.
A little luck goes a long way
In their next game, Albion faced a tough trip to the City of Manchester
Stadium. Robson gave Ronnie Wallwork his first Albion start for
almost a year and set the team up to defend. It started badly when
Gaardsoe was dismissed for a professional foul and Anelka scored
with a free kick. City dominated but somehow failed to add to their
lead. And then, in one of the comedy moments of the season, Richard
Dunne inadvertently deflected a hopeful long ball past David James
to give Albion a lucky, lucky point.
After five straight defeats, it was a start. Four days later, a
rejuvenated Albion travelled to the Reebok looking for their second
win, and first double, of the season. Robson played his second masterstroke
of putting Clement into central defence to replace the suspended
Gaardsoe, and after Gera put Albion in front, it looked like the
three points might be on the way. But a late, and deserved, equaliser
from Diouf meant that Albion had to settle for a point, but the
belief was returning.
So that's what winning feels like...
Clem continued in central defence for the visit of a depleted Newcastle
side, and Martin Albrechtsen got his first start under Robson. It
was another point for the Baggies, but for the first time for weeks,
Albion were the better side. Robson's first win in charge of Albion
came at Preston in the FA Cup - it was nothing more than expected
at the time, but having seen what they've done since, it looks like
a much better result.
A first league win looked on the cards at Craven Cottage as Albion
started to play some excellent football and dominated the game.
Andy Johnson and Paul Robinson had been transformed under Robson's
guidance, and it was ironic that AJ suffered a bad injury that day
when he had performed so well. Unfortunately, the Premiership proved
a cruel league once again when Diop's late winner gave Fulham the
points to leave Albion five points from safety. Despite the recovery
in form, the gap to 17th remained just as wide as it was on Boxing
Day.
But then, it finally happened. With a 5.15pm kick off, Albion fans
had to watch all their rivals pick up points which meant that the
pressure to win was huge, but win they did with goals from Campbell,
and a first Baggies strike for Wallwork. Twelve games into his Albion
career and Robbo finally had his first league win.
Chances missed
After a little light relief in the FA Cup, Albion faced their three
closest relegation rivals back-to-back, with a Cup replay stuck
in between. It proved to be an agonising time. After twice being
in the lead at Carrow Road, Albion conspired to lose and, then,
after taking the lead in injury time against Palace, they still
managed to concede an equaliser. After escaping with a draw against
Southampton, it looked very bleak once again.
|
| Pos |
|
P |
W |
D |
L |
F |
A |
W |
D |
L |
F |
A |
GD |
Pts |
| 17 |
Crystal Palace |
27 |
4 |
2 |
7 |
13 |
13 |
1 |
5 |
8 |
17 |
32 |
-15 |
22 |
| 18 |
Southampton |
27 |
3 |
8 |
2 |
20 |
18 |
0 |
3 |
11 |
8 |
25 |
-15 |
20 |
| 19 |
Norwich City |
27 |
3 |
5 |
5 |
20 |
25 |
0 |
6 |
8 |
6 |
27 |
-26 |
20 |
| 20 |
West Bromwich Albion |
27 |
2 |
7 |
5 |
11 |
21 |
0 |
5 |
8 |
12 |
28 |
-26 |
18 |
Albion were playing some good stuff but the results were just not
coming. T-Mobile and the PA announcer were persisting with the Great
Escape theme, but with a tough run in, most Albion fans were pessimistic
about their survival chances as Birmingham City visited the Hawthorns
for a 12 noon Sunday kick off. With Palace and Southampton having
picked up points the previous day, the pressure to win was even
bigger than it had been when Man City visited a few weeks earlier.
Thankfully, the result was the same as two second half goals secured
the points for the Baggies, and moved them off the bottom for the
first time since November.
A little momentum...
The Blues result was a great fillip and we all started to get our
calculators out again. 36 points seemed like it would be enough
meaning that wins over Everton and Blackburn, and away at Charlton
were likely to be needed. After somehow escaping with a 1-0 defeat
at Stamford Bridge, Albion travelled to the Valley in hope, and
in numbers. The club laid on free coaches, a tactic that had always
brought three points back to the Hawthorns in the past.
This was no exception as a dramatic fifteen minute hat-trick from
Robert Earnshaw gave Albion their biggest ever Premiership win,
their first away win of the season, and their first win at the Valley
since 1955. I looked for omens all the time, and in 1955, Chelsea
won the league and Albion finished 17th!!
Everton visited the Hawthorns for yet another Sunday televised game
a fortnight later. Despite their league position, their form since
Christmas had been worse than Albion's, and a goal from Zoltan Gera
gave the Baggies a massive win which put them level on points with
17th-placed Southampton. There was now real hope - a couple of points
from the next three away games, and wins at home to Blackburn and
Portsmouth might just be enough.
A week later, Albion had to wait until Sunday once again. Saturday
saw Southampton lose, but also saw the start of Norwich's unlikely
revival as they beat Man Utd. With Palace not playing until later
on Sunday, Albion had the chance to move out of the bottom three
at Villa Park. Villa dominated the first half and took the lead,
but after a good second half display, an injury time equaliser from
Robinson gave the Baggies a point - the Great Escape was well and
truly on.
A stumble at the last?
Another good point at White Hart Lane followed before they pulled
out the free coaches once again for the trip to 'Boro. It was all
set for a momentous return to Teeside for Bryan Robson, but while
the fans may have had sympathies, the 'Boro players showed none
as they took a first half 3-0 lead to leave the visitors shell-shocked.
Back in the bottom three, it was crunch time. A win for Albion in
their game in hand against Blackburn on a Tuesday evening would
see them move back out of the drop zone and put them in the driving
seat for an unlikely escape. Mark Hughes had transformed Rovers
into a solid outfit, with little spark up front, so we all thought
the problem would be getting the breakthrough. A wonderful free
kick from Kieran Richardson saw to that, but then, for the first
time for a while, nerves crept in to the Albion side, and sloppy
defending saw the visitors grab an equaliser.
With games against Arsenal and Man Utd to come, Albion once again
had a mountain to climb.
Miracles do happen!
An excellent Arsenal side took an expected three points at the Hawthorns
and anything but a draw between Palace and Southampton the following
Saturday would see Albion relegated before they kicked a ball at
Old Trafford. It all looked lost as the 3 o'clock kick offs came
to a close as Palace led 2-1 and Norwich were also winning. But
then, a lifeline for Albion came in the form of a late, late equaliser
from Danny Higginbotham for the Saints - The First Miracle.
It was game on.
The game at OT was similar to the one at the Bridge in many ways
as the home side took the lead before squandering chance after chance.
Kuszczak performed magic to keep the ball out of the Albion net
until Horsfield went down in the box and a penalty was awarded -
The Second Miracle. Earnie coolly converted to give Albion
a precious, if unlikely, point.
Nonetheless, a third, much bigger, miracle was required on the last
day. And so it came to pass.....The Third Miracle of three
results and three points. And for the third weekend in succession,
the team who started the weekend in 20th place ended it in 17th
- timed to perfection!!
It was Party Time.
|
| Pos |
|
P |
W |
D |
L |
F |
A |
W |
D |
L |
F |
A |
GD |
Pts |
| 17 |
West Bromwich Albion |
38 |
5 |
8 |
6 |
17 |
24 |
1 |
8 |
10 |
19 |
37 |
-25 |
34 |
| 18 |
Crystal Palace |
38 |
6 |
5 |
8 |
21 |
19 |
1 |
7 |
11 |
20 |
43 |
-21 |
33 |
| 19 |
Norwich City |
38 |
7 |
5 |
7 |
29 |
32 |
0 |
7 |
12 |
13 |
45 |
-35 |
33 |
| 20 |
Southampton |
38 |
5 |
9 |
5 |
30 |
30 |
1 |
5 |
13 |
15 |
36 |
-21 |
32 |
In the second half of the season, Albion amassed 24 points. If they
had reproduced that over the full 38 games, it would have seen them
finish in 10th place. Robson engineered a truly remarkable turnaround
that proved the pundits wrong and put an end to the "bottom at Christmas"
curse.
When they re-make The Great Escape, Captain Virgil Hilts will
clear the Swiss border on his motorbike!!
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