Football clockwatch – as it happened
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Version 0 of 1. 5.08pm GMT17:08 Now all that remains is for me to point you towards Scott Murray’s MBM of QPR v Man City. That one starts soon so go on, scram! And, of course, have a great remainder of the weekend. Thanks for your emails and tweets, and just for being you. 5.06pm GMT17:06 So, before I leave you, a reminder of this afternoon’s major 3pm kick-off stories: Updated at 5.07pm GMT 5.00pm GMT17:00 Our second giantkilling is confirmed! Chester have beaten Southend 2-1 at Roots Hall! Congratulations to them. 4.59pm GMT16:59 And that’s full-time, finally, at Portman Road. Ipswich 1-0 Watford. The Tractor Boys are up to fourth and Mick McCarthy might, just might, have them in this for the long haul... 4.58pm GMT16:58 Dover have beaten Morecambe 1-0! A giantkilling for the Conference South club! 4.56pm GMT16:56 That was indeed a winner for Forest. 2-1 over Norwich, a great late comeback there. Charlton, too, have won – 1-0 at Reading. 4.56pm GMT16:56 At Portman Road they are four minutes into SIX of added time. Ipswich lead Watford 1-0. And that’s full-time at the Riverside. The free-scoring top two have, of course, drawn 0-0. 4.55pm GMT16:55 And is that a winner for Forest and the embattled Stuart Pearce? Michael Antonio has scored in the 93rd minute against Norwich: 2-1! The visitors’ manager, Neil Adams, might find himself under pressure. 4.54pm GMT16:54 FULL-TIME: Burnley 1-0 Hull City And there you have your Premier League result of the day! Ashley Barnes’ first-ever Premier League goal, in the 50th minute, did the job against a Hull side that has tailed off rather. Burnley have won a game! 4.53pm GMT16:53 FULL-TIME: Southampton 2-0 Leicester The Saints go marching on, and deservedly so. A nicely-taken brace from Shane Long did the business. 4.52pm GMT16:52 FULL-TIME: West Ham 0-0 Aston Villa Villa, somehow, clung on! 4.51pm GMT16:51 Hemel Hempstead seem, cruelly, to have been denied at the last against Bury. The Shakers are 2-1 up through Nathan Cameron. 4.51pm GMT16:51 FULL-TIME: Manchester United 1-0 Crystal Palace It was far from pretty or thrilling, but Mata’s deflected strike did it and Palace will rue a couple of misses from Fraizer Campbell. 4.50pm GMT16:50 And knock they do, as Andy Carroll almost made it a return to remember! He hung in the air to power in a back-post cross.....but Brad Guzan, not for the first time today, saved superbly! 4.49pm GMT16:49 Burnley are just a couple of minutes away from a first win of the season now. Tense times at Turf Moor. West Ham, meanwhile, still knocking on the door against Villa in our only goalless Premier League game. 4.46pm GMT16:46 A goal in one of our big Championship games! It’s Tommy Smith for Ipswich against Watford, and that could be a huge one for the fifth-placed Tractor Boys! 1-0 they lead with seven minutes left. Fulham have a third now, with the transfer market’s Ross McCormack making it 3-1 against Huddersfield. And Forest have equalised against Norwich – it’s the transfer market’s Britt Assombalonga. 4.43pm GMT16:43 Suarez assist again. He's been superb since coming on at ht Confirmation from Sid. 4.42pm GMT16:42 2-1 to Barcelona at Almeria now! And the story there is that Luis Suarez, the substitute, has made them both. His latest assist was for Jordi Alba, and Barca seem to be out of jail there now after an almighty scare. 4.41pm GMT16:41 Barnet 1-3 Wycombe and Bromley 3-4 Dartford now. 4.40pm GMT16:40 Another burst of goals in the Championship. Joel Lynch equalised for Huddersfield at Fulham before, almost straightaway, Lasse Vigen Christensen scored for the hosts. 2-1 to Fulham there. 4.39pm GMT16:39 Juan Mata has nearly made it two at Old Trafford! This time no deflection – he thwacked another good effort against the post and Palace are still in it. 4.39pm GMT16:39 Goal! Southampton 2-0 Leicester! (Shane Long 80) Shane Long again! A clearance from Schmeichel was returned with interest and Long, all alone and onside, had time to take the ball on, look here and there, and slot the ball calmly home! Surely game over there. 4.37pm GMT16:37 Still goalless at Upton Park, by the way, but West Ham and Diafra Sakho are strongly knocking at the door. 4.35pm GMT16:35 Nile Ranger has just scored for Blackpool, who are now 3-1 down at Leeds. Neil Redfearn’s position is beginning to look untenable. 4.34pm GMT16:34 Goal! Southampton 1-0 Leicester! (Shane Long 75) They deserve it. Graziano Pelle held the ball up expertly from a diagonal ball forward, laid it off to the onrushing Long, and the Irishman bent a left-footer past Schmeichel. That was very nice indeed. Exemplary number-nine play, in particular, from Pelle. Updated at 4.36pm GMT 4.33pm GMT16:33 Looks as if one of our non-league favourites has been comprehensively de-Fyled. They’re 2-0 down at Plymouth. Bromley v Dartford is now 3-3 though! 4.32pm GMT16:32 Barcelona have equalised at Almeria. It’s Neymar, off the bench. 4.31pm GMT16:31 Kiran Kulkarni is chewing over the enigma that is today’s goalscorer, Mata: “The ‘Juan Mata situation’ is quite perplexing at least to me because he was the best Chelsea player & he was instrumental in Blues staying competitive when Torres & Co were mediocre.. Why doesn’t he start? “On the other hand I don’t think Januzaj is progressing apart from few crowd cheering runs which in reality aren’t unlocking even the bottom-half defences.” 4.29pm GMT16:29 Leicester, meanwhile, are well under the cosh at Southampton as far as I can see. Shots raining in, heads getting in the way, corners, you name it. Meanwhile, in the Championship game at Ipswich, Stephen Hunt and Fernando Forestieri have missed golden chances for either side.... 4.28pm GMT16:28 Another goal at the New Den! 3-2 to Brentford, it’s Harlee Dean! And straight after Millwall had hit the bar.... 4.27pm GMT16:27 As things stand, Chester (at Southend) and Dover (vs Morecambe) are today’s cup giantkillers... 4.25pm GMT16:25 Wycombe are winning at Barnet now. Go Chairboys! Andre Pierre your goalscorer. 4.25pm GMT16:25 Goal! Manchester United 1-0 Crystal Palace! (Mata 67) More likely to go United’s way be the looks of it. It’s Juan Mata! He’s come off the bench to drill in a left-footer from the edge of the box that is deflected and Speroni can’t hold! In it goes, and that’s cruel. Updated at 4.38pm GMT 4.23pm GMT16:23 Hull, by the way, have made all three subs now at Burnley but they have a real problem – Curtis Davies has done himself a mischief attempting an overhead kick-style contortion, and may have to go off.... 4.22pm GMT16:22 Palace are still making chances at Old Trafford. Puncheon crosses to his opposite winger, Bolasie, who should probably head it but can’t make a decent contact. Could go either way.... 4.21pm GMT16:21 And, errr, it’s now 2-2. Alan Dunne for Millwall!! 4.20pm GMT16:20 Oh, no, the picture has just blurred rather. Millwall have hit straight back! Lee Gregory has scored, it’s now Millwall 1-2 Brentford. 4.19pm GMT16:19 Not many shades of Gray at the New Den: Andre has done it again for Brentford; they’re now 2-0 up and in very exciting form. 4.18pm GMT16:18 Hull, meanwhile, have brought on Hatem ben Arfa for James Chester at Burnley. It is safe to say that this is an attacking move as they look to equalised the only Premier League goal we’ve seen yet this afternoon. 4.17pm GMT16:17 Mane is being treated for an injury at Southampton. He is such an exciting, explosive player and has been their main threat today. Updated at 4.21pm GMT 4.16pm GMT16:16 Bit of an upset on the cards at League Two Cheltenham, who lead League One side Swindon 3-0. 4.14pm GMT16:14 And here *is* a Championship goal: Rudy Gestede’s 10th of the season has made it Brighton 1-1 Blackburn. 4.14pm GMT16:14 Ipswich v Watford and Boro v Bournemouth continue to sound like rattling good games at the top of the second tier. Be a surprise if both of these ended goalless.... 4.13pm GMT16:13 The shock is back on at Southend! Conference side Chester have taken the lead again. 2-1, and Craig Mahon scored it. 4.12pm GMT16:12 Disallowed goal at Southampton. Sadio Mane dinked the ball over Kasper Schmeichel and in, but the linesman’s decision was correct there. 4.10pm GMT16:10 Palace are still a real threat on the counter at Old Trafford and you’d heave really backed Puncheon just now, with just Luke Shaw between him and the goal, but a mixture of the attacker’s dallying and the defender’s good positioning allow Carrick to nip back. Updated at 4.14pm GMT 4.09pm GMT16:09 That Bromley v Dartford fixture, which you can imagine being pretty lively, is now 1-1. Danny Harris equalises for the visitors. 4.08pm GMT16:08 Could that pave the way for Burnley’s first win? Might be a nervy 40 minutes or so ahead now. 4.07pm GMT16:07 Goal! Burnley 1-0 Hull City! (Ashley Barnes, 50) We have a Premier League goal and it’s for Burnley! Ashley Barnes has thundered a header into the net, his first Premier League goal, and it’s just rewards after Sean Dyche’s boys had the better of the first period. Updated at 4.19pm GMT 4.05pm GMT16:05 Manchester United have come out stronger against Palace, a few good balls going into the box. Remember, though, that Palace had the best chances in that first half. A good start from United ended in little more than huff and puff. 4.04pm GMT16:04 A half-time I neglected to give you was that Plymouth are leading Fylde 1-0. The Peninsula Boys, as nobody calls them, have it all to do. 4.03pm GMT16:03 Mark Lumley is...kind of...at a game: “I’m watching the game in a Beer Station here in Kalaw, Myanmar with 3 local fans- who coincidently are out of their skulls on Betal Nut and local grog. The Ron Jeremy look-a-like sitting behind has resorted to grunting every time Fellaini is on the ball. Even the Myanmar Man United fans hate him.” Yet again, too many questions. 4.02pm GMT16:02 Ok, second-half time.... 45 minutes of truth. Although it’s all going to need a harder sell at this rate. 3.53pm GMT15:53 Tom Adams, from Toronto, opines: “The current results are more interesting if you think of them like really good jazz - it’s about the goals they don’t score, yeah?” Erm, yeah. 3.52pm GMT15:52 It’s also goalless in the two games at the Championship summit, Boro v Bournemouth and Ipswich v Watford, although both sound pretty entertaining. In fact I’ll give you the rest of the Championship scores: Birmingham 0-0 Cardiff; Brighton 1-0 Blackburn (a Gary Gardner goal that I missed a few minutes ago; Fulham 1-0 Huddersfield; Leeds 3-0 Blackpool; Millwall 0-1 Brentford; Nottm Forest 0-1 Norwich; Reading 0-1 Charlton; Sheff Wed 0-0 Rotherham. Updated at 3.54pm GMT 3.50pm GMT15:50 A shock on the cards after all? It’s Dover 1-0 Morecambe. The Conference South side have just scored through Stefan Payne. 3.48pm GMT15:48 Half-times in the Premier League Manchester United 0-0 Crystal Palace Burnley 0-0 Hull Southampton 0-0 Leicester West Ham 0-0 Aston Villa So we could be doing a bit better really, couldn’t we? 3.46pm GMT15:46 It’s Millwall 0-1 Brentford – Andre Gray has scored three in three for the Bees. 3.45pm GMT15:45 Chance for Palace at Old Trafford! Fraizer Campbell was one-on-one with De Gea, had to score....lofted it over! Then he had an overhead kick from point-blank range after a corner was headed down.....on target and it’s in, but it went over too! Palace are improving fast as the break nears. Updated at 3.54pm GMT 3.44pm GMT15:44 What on earth is happening at Leeds? They are now 3-0 up over Blackpool through Mirco Antenucci. Updated at 3.44pm GMT 3.43pm GMT15:43 Another Championship goal – Igor Vekotele has made it Reading 0-1 Charlton. 3.40pm GMT15:40 Drinks break at St Mary’s, although looking at the rain there I’m not sure any fluid is really needed. But it came on account of an injury to Steve Davis, who has been replaced by Jack Cork. 3.39pm GMT15:39 Goal for Almeria! It’s Almeria 1-0 Barcelona, the scorer Thievy....after Lionel Messi had lost the ball! Updated at 3.52pm GMT 3.38pm GMT15:38 Goal for the Chairboys. A Paul Hayes penalty makes it 1-1 at Barnet. 3.37pm GMT15:37 I mentioned Bolasie earlier and he’s just shown again, driving into the box and putting a whipped ball in that Daley Blind had to turn behind ahead of Fraizer Campbell. 3.36pm GMT15:36 Ooooh and that was close from Mane at St Mary’s. He whipped an angled shot just over from close in. Not seeing a lot from Leicester at the moment. Updated at 3.36pm GMT 3.35pm GMT15:35 Southend have equalised against Chester. A Barry Corr penalty. 3.35pm GMT15:35 Christopher Rendle is at a game, apparently: “I’m at Burnley vs Hull. In the stands before kick off I was eating a ketchup smothered hotdog in my Saturday night fever/Elvis suit when a wayward practise shot knocked the hotdog out of my hand and the ketchup all over my jacket. I didn’t see who hit the shot so my attempt to get the cost of my dry cleaning covered in a small-claims court might be a bit fruitless.” So many questions, so little time. Updated at 3.40pm GMT 3.33pm GMT15:33 Another cup reality check. Hartlepool lead East Thurrock, from way down in the Ryman League, 1-0. 3.32pm GMT15:32 Another goal at Leeds! It’s Souleymane Doukara, and it’s Leeds 2-0 Blackpool. Apparently it was rather nice on the eye after some lovely approach play from the Brazilian prodigy, Adryan. 3.31pm GMT15:31 I’m not sure I mentioned earlier that Wilfried Zaha can’t play for Palace today – he’s on loan from United of course – so Neil Warnock’s new best friend Jason Puncheon is in. He’s been peripheral but Yannick Bolasie, on the other flank, did just have a little scamper down the left. Palace, although they aren’t really offering much, are not conceding many clear chances either. 3.29pm GMT15:29 Once again, if you’re at a game today, tell me all about it via email or that there Twitter. 3.27pm GMT15:27 United still banging on the door: Wayne Rooney has smacked over from 25 yards and then, shortly afterwards, Luke Shaw went on a marauding run and saw his effort turned behind by Speroni. Updated at 3.29pm GMT 3.26pm GMT15:26 Thanks to the several of you who have swiftly come to our Chairboys rescue. Read on for the truth. 3.25pm GMT15:25 Burnley really want that first win. Danny Ings has just been superbly denied by the returning Steve Harper and then, moments later, Robbie Brady desperately cleared off the line from his own man, Paul McShane! 3.24pm GMT15:24 Another Championship goal: Fulham 1-0 Huddersfield. Two in-form sides, these, and Hugo Rodallega has struck the first blow at Craven Cottage. His sixth goal of what might be a renaissance season. 3.22pm GMT15:22 Southampton are setting the tempo against Leicester. Sadio Mane has just put in a tempting ball just beyond Graziano Pelle as the home side look to turn the screw on second place. Updated at 3.24pm GMT 3.20pm GMT15:20 From Jezz Dresner: “Why are Wycombe called the Chairboys? The internet is turning up nothing and digging around in Wycombe forums was not my plan for the afternoon. Nick, please help.” Jezz, I can’t! Can anyone else? 3.19pm GMT15:19 Goal for Norwich at Nottingham Forest: Jonny Howson has put the Canaries in the lead against a troubled home side. 3.19pm GMT15:19 The cup romance can be watered down a little – it hasn’t taken Bury long to equalise against Hemel Hempstead through Andrew Tutte. 3.18pm GMT15:18 No goals yet in our Championship table-topping games, although Middlesbrough have seen Adam Reach smack the crossbar against Bournemouth and Gianni Munari has been thwarted by by Ipswich ‘keeper Bartosz Bialkowski as Watford threatened. 3.14pm GMT15:14 A couple of chances at Upton Park. Gabriel Agbonlahor has shot over for Villa while James Collins, got onto the end of a tasty Aaron Cresswell corner for West Ham only for Brad Guzan to gather. 3.13pm GMT15:13 The FA Cup runneth over. 10 minutes in and another possible shock! Hemel Hempstead, from the Conference South, lead at League Two high-fliers Bury! James Potton with the goal. 3.12pm GMT15:12 You like match reports? Then come this way, reader, for Danny’s typically excellent take on Liverpool 1-2 Chelsea. 3.11pm GMT15:11 Goal for Leeds against Blackpool. It’s Liam Cooper, it’s 1-0, and I’ll come back to you with a wisecrack about boardroom shenanigans. Updated at 3.11pm GMT 3.10pm GMT15:10 Palace aren’t seeing much of the ball at Old Trafford. I think they might miss Mile Jedinak – sent off towards the end on Monday night – for this one. Commanding figure in the midfield who has just got better and better over the last couple of years. 3.09pm GMT15:09 Another FA Cup shock in the offing? Chester, from the Conference, lead at League Two Southend. Ben Heneghan is yer man. 3.08pm GMT15:08 West Ham are on the front foot against Villa at the moment, but Enner Valencia has just hit a free-kick from a decent position into the wall. The resulting corner came to nought. Updated at 3.17pm GMT 3.06pm GMT15:06 And in another of the FA Cup games we mentioned earlier Barnet have taken the lead over Wycombe – it’s ex-Chairboy John Akinde for the Conference leaders against the League Two table-toppers. 3.04pm GMT15:04 We have an early goal in the FA Cup! Bromley 1-0 Dartford, and it’s Louis Dennis inside the first minute of what is a big derby between two non-league giants. 3.03pm GMT15:03 Very close from Manchester United early on, Adnan Januzaj fizzing one just over the angle. At Turf Moor, Danny Ings has fired an early shot across the bows of Hull. 3.00pm GMT15:00 Aaaaaand they’re off. 3pm. Stadiums up and down the country. Let’s get this show on the road..... Don’t go anywhere. 2.54pm GMT14:54 Fylde isn’t actually a town, did you know that? I didn’t. It’s a concept, a way of life, a movement, and also the peninsula on which, among other places, Blackpool and Fleetwood are situated. Plymouth are up against an hulking landmass at Home Park today. Updated at 2.54pm GMT 2.47pm GMT14:47 Weston-Super-Mare v Doncaster has been postponed! Game is off here. A lot of very unhappy @drfc_official fans, some started to attack media section Heavy rain, apparently. That’s a shame (and something of an overreaction from the fans if true, although they’ve certainly had a long and wasted trip). We’ll keep you posted on anything more. And what a good job that it wasn’t abandoned. Updated at 2.55pm GMT 2.44pm GMT14:44 Enough tweets for the moment. What are you looking forward today? Me, I think Ipswich v Watford and Boro v Bournemouth in the Championship look like fun. But I’m also intrigued to see if West Ham can – as, on form, they should – climb into the top four with a win over Villa and if Diafra Sakho, barely known to most punters before a few weeks back, can keep up his stunning form. This is what he produced for Metz last season. We had been warned: Updated at 2.45pm GMT 2.42pm GMT14:42 Should we all just go home? 29 - Only two teams in Premier League history have ever had more than 29 points after 11 games (Chelsea 2005/06, Man City 2011/12). Dominant 2.40pm GMT14:40 News from Almeria. Luis Suarez on the bench for Barcelona this time. A look at the team named by @luisenrique21 to face Almeria. Força Barça! #FCBLive #AlmeriaFCB pic.twitter.com/1GAm8uxy0s 2.38pm GMT14:38 Full-time at Anfield: Liverpool 1-2 Chelsea. That one went to form, then, despite Can’s deflected deadlock-breaker for the home team. I’ll get Danny Taylor’s match report to you as soon as it’s ready. 2.36pm GMT14:36 Blind to play CB, LvG just said... Interesting. Carrick in midfield then, with left-footed Blind alongside the right-footed McNair at centre-back. 2.27pm GMT14:27 Now, as we’ve already seen, it’s FA Cup first round day and Steven Pye has sent us a very nice blog he’s written on this stage of the 1983/84 season – “A round which featured Alan Pardew playing for the Corinthian Casuals, wins for Maidstone and Enfield, and Jimmy Greaves’ son-in-law scoring for Chelmsford.” 2.24pm GMT14:24 West Ham v Aston Villa – the teams TEAMS: #WHUFC Adrian, Reid, Cresswell, Kouyate, Downing, Sakho, Noble (c), Jenkinson, Collins, Song, Valencia #WHUAVL #COYI #AVFC (v @WHUFC_Official): Guzan, Lowton, Vlaar, Baker, Cissokho, Sanchez, Westwood, Cleverley, Weimann, N’Zogbia, Agbonlahor. #AVFCLIVE Diafra Sakho starts for West Ham in place of Morgan Amalfitano. He’ll be looking t score for an EIGHTH successive game. Andy Carroll is back among the subs. One enforced change for Villa, Gabriel Agbonlahor coming in for felony’s Christian Benteke. Updated at 2.27pm GMT 2.19pm GMT14:19 I know it was getting pretty tense at Derby before we dropped the ball to immerse you in team news, but the Rams did indeed cling on to beat Wolves 5-0. 2.18pm GMT14:18 Burnley v Hull – the teams Confirmed #BFC starting XI: Heaton; Ward, Shackell (c), Duff, Trippier; Boyd, Jones, Marney, Arfield; Ings, Barnes #ClaretsLIVE @HullCity Starting XI: Harper, Davies, McShane, Chester, Elmohamady, Brady, Huddlestone, Livermore, Diame, Aluko, Hernandez #UTT One switch for Burnley. Ashley Barnes replaces Marvin Sordell up top. Two changes for Hull: Steve Harper replaces Eldin Jakupovic in goal and Sone Aluko is in for The Mercurial Hatem Ben Arfa. Updated at 2.18pm GMT 2.15pm GMT14:15 Southampton v Leicester – the teams #SaintsFC team vs @OfficialFOXES: Forster, Clyne, Fonte (c), Alderweireld, Bertrand, Wanyama, Schneiderlin, S. Davis, Tadić, Mané, Pellè. Schmeichel; De Laet, Wasilewski, Morgan (c), Schlupp; Cambiasso, James, Drinkwater, King; Vardy, Ulloa. #SouLei They said it: Mané replaces Shane Long for the flying Saints. For Leicester, Schlupp is in for Konchesky and Ulloa in for Nugent. 2.09pm GMT14:09 A goal at Anfield! Diego Costa makes it 2-1 to Chelsea! Go and see Scott Murray – now! 2.07pm GMT14:07 Manchester United v Crystal Palace – the teams United XI: De Gea, Valencia, McNair, Blind, Shaw, Fellaini, Carrick, Januzaj, Rooney, Di Maria, van Persie. #mufclive pic.twitter.com/sXjwgIt8Ro Palace team to play @ManUtd: Speroni, Mariappa, Delaney, Dann, Ward, Puncheon, Ledley, McArthur, Bolasie, Chamakh, Campbell. Michael Carrick starts his first game of the season, while Paddy McNair is in too. Chris Smalling, suspended, and the injured Marcos Rojo make way. For Palace, Adrian Mariappa comes in for Martin Kelly and James McArthur is in for the suspended Mile Jedinak. 2.01pm GMT14:01 As always, your emails will probably hinder be a great assistance in making sense of all that’s going on this afternoon. I’m particularly keen to know if you’re at a game, particularly if it’s not one of the Premier League ones. What’s happening there? Tell us. The address is at the top. 1.56pm GMT13:56 There is action abroad, too. And Barcelona, humbled by Celta Vigo at home last weekend, must visit Almeria at 3pm. Surely they can’t slip up there? 1.52pm GMT13:52 You may well recognise Fylde’s manager, by the way. He’s the King of the Flingers. Updated at 1.54pm GMT 1.50pm GMT13:50 It’s not just about the league today though. No way. This is FA Cup First Round Day, or at least day two of FA Cup First Round Weekend. Warrington, a full 100 places below League Two side Exeter in the pyramid, got us off to a flyer last night with a heroic 1-0 win and there are a further 27 (twenty-seven) games today. I’m not going to promise you every single goal from those as they happen but I’ll definitely be bringing you the best bits. What could those be? Weston Super Mare v Doncaster is one that hits you between the eyes. Donny are 17th in League One but were a Championship side last season; their hosts, three tiers below in the Conference South, aren’t doing at all well in the league – they’re second from bottom – but, as so often happens, they’ve pulled out all the stops in the cup so far. One to watch there. I’ll pick you out another: Plymouth v AFC Fylde. Not only are there two divisions between them (League Two hosts Conference North), but the pair are separated by 316 miles. Plymouth are sixth in the fourth tier, Fylde second in the sixth. You never know. Meanwhile Barnet, top of the Conference, host Wycombe, top of League Two, in a game that feels like an old-early ‘90s rivalry. Like a bit of early ‘90s FA Cup? And before? Some of these YouTube links will while away the time between now and kick-off. I don’t know about you but, back in the day, FA Cup first round weekend seemed a wonderfully obscure thing of muddy pitches, dark, gloomy afternoons in faintly intimidating suburban stadia, blustering centre-forwards, terrible goalkeeping, moments of transient brilliance....you know the kind of thing. It had its special place and should do, still. Updated at 2.06pm GMT 1.39pm GMT13:39 Now 5-0. Johnny Russell has his own second. Busy old Clocko and it’s only 13:38. Updated at 1.47pm GMT 1.36pm GMT13:36 It is now 4-0 to Derby against a really, really bad Wolves. Jeff Hendrick has his second. Rams going top of the Championship....for now. Updated at 1.47pm GMT 1.30pm GMT13:30 ...because we also have the biggest day of Championship football so far this season. As we speak, Derby – in fourth – are giving sixth-placed Wolves a pounding. 3-0 at Pride Park early in the second half. Wolves have been appalling; check out the defending for the Rams’ third later on. Then at 3pm, the top two play each other at the Riverside. It’s Middlesbrough (2nd) v Bournemouth (1st) and should be a belter. And there’s more: fifth-placed Ipswich host third-placed Watford. A chance for some teams to really put themselves firmly in there today, and hope for the chasing pack that at least three of those above them in what is a very tight division will be dropping points. Other interesting fixtures in the second tier include Leeds v Blackpool, in a game that should result in at least one managerial sacking, and Nottingham Forest v Norwich – which would have been the top-of-the-table clash until a few weeks ago. Both are in pretty poor form; neither is at all far from the business end, all the same. All good fun. Updated at 1.53pm GMT 1.30pm GMT13:30 Good afternoon, clockwatchers! And there are a lot of clocks to watch today. Four 3pm Premier League games, yes, but that ain’t much so we’ll do our best to be all holistic and bring you news, frippery and the rest from what is a very important day elsewhere. Top flight first, though, and here is what we’ve got: Liverpool v Chelsea (the early kick-off and currently poised at 1-1 – follow it with Scott Murray); Burnley v Hull City; Manchester United v Crystal Palace; Southampton v Leicester City; West Ham United v Aston Villa. QPR v Manchester City is the late game, and I’ll hook you up to that in due course. So what’s to like here? Southampton are probably the big draw of the 3pms. A victory against Leicester – who have lost four out of five, the outlier being a draw with winless Burnley, since beating Manchester United 5-3 and have dropped into the relegation places – would hammer home their current second position. West Ham came back to draw against Stoke last weekend and the feelgood factor around Sam Allardyce’s side is impossible to ignore at the moment, as strange as it may feel. If they beat Villa, who have disastrously lost six in a row including last weekend’s late heartbreak against Spurs, they’ll go into the Champions League places – at least until Arsenal visit Swansea tomorrow. Manchester United? The plucky mid-tablers surprised everyone by making a burst for the top four a few weeks back but now find themselves in 10th and three years away from being put back together again. Can they come back from last weekend’s derby defeat against Palace, whose three defeats in four – including a poor 3-1 home loss at Sunderland on Monday night – have set one or two alarm bells ringing in south-east London? As for Burnley v Hull, a first win is becoming a pretty pressing concern for Sean Dyche’s side. They battled well against Everton two weeks ago but showed little at Arsenal last weekend and they need to pick up points pronto if they aren’t to be cast well adrift. On paper this would seem like the perfect opportunity, but Hull are a strong proposition now and may well have the players to finish higher than 14th. They were pipped by Victor Wanyama’s 40-yarder at Southampton last week and have business of their own to get down to. Something for everyone? I’d have thought so. And there’s much, much more.... 1.30pm GMT13:30 Updated at 1.49pm GMT |