MX23RW : Sunday, January 19 09:55:01| >> :120:53265:53265:
[monks data]
Attendance: 26,932
Norwich logo
Championship
Apr 21, 2017 at 7.45pm UK
 
Brighton logo

2-0

Stockdale (18' og., 39' og.)
FT(HT: 2-0)

Luckless Brighton & Hove Albion made to wait for Championship title

Two unfortunate and identical own goals from goalkeeper David Stockdale see Brighton fall to a 2-0 defeat to Norwich, forcing them to wait for the Championship title.

Brighton & Hove Albion have been made to wait for the Championship title following a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Norwich City at Carrow Road this evening.

The Seagulls secured promotion to the Premier League on Monday and went into tonight's match knowing that victory would be enough to crown them champions above Newcastle United, but two unfortunate own goals from luckless goalkeeper David Stockdale saw the visitors denied in unlikely fashion.

It was Brighton who made the more positive start to the match, but Anthony Knockaert, Jamie Murphy and Uwe Hunemeier all failed to make the most of chances inside the opening 15 minutes.

The hosts had the best early chance, though, when Jonny Howson's low delivery almost picked out Nelson Oliveira at the back post only for the Portuguese striker to fall just short of getting enough on the ball.

Norwich's opening goal arrived after just 18 minutes when Alex Pritchard unleashed a thunderous half-volley from the edge of the box that crashed against the crossbar before bouncing off the back of a helpless Stockdale and creeping over the line.

Brighton were struggling to get into the rhythm that had seen them climb to the top of the table, but John Ruddy was still the busier of the two goalkeepers and he was needed to keep out a glancing header from Hunemeier shortly before the half-hour mark.

Brighton boss Chris Hughton - making his first return to Carrow Road since being sacked by Norwich in 2014 - would have been forgiven for thinking that it was not going to be his side's day when they conceded a second with just six minutes to go until half time.

It arrived in almost identical fashion to the first too, with another Pritchard strike this time striking the post before bouncing back against Stockdale and over the line once again.

Norwich reached the halfway stage with a two-goal lead despite failing to have a single shot on target in the opening 45 minutes, and luck continued to be on their side in the second half when Howson was in the right place to clear Murphy's header off the line shortly before the hour mark.

The visitors continued to press for a way back into the match, but efforts from Murphy and Glenn Murray failed to seriously worry Ruddy in the Norwich goal and the Canaries were able to hold out for a win which puts them a big step closer to securing a top-half finish this season, despite failing to muster a single shot on target during the game.

Brighton, meanwhile, will now renew their bid for a fourth league title in the space of 16 years when they host Bristol City next Saturday.

ID:296535: cacheID:296535:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:4418:
Written by
Barney Corkhill
No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Lewis Dunk of Brighton & Hove Albion celebrates with Gaetan Bong as he scores their first goal during the Championship playoff semi-final second leg against Sheffield Wednesday on May 16, 2016
Read Next:
PFA announces EFL Teams of the Year
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
FT
Washington
45-31
Lions
8pm
Rams
@
Eagles
11.30pm
Ravens
@
Bills
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool21155150203050
2Arsenal22128243212244
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest21125430201041
4Newcastle UnitedNewcastle22115638261238
5Chelsea21107441261537
6Bournemouth22107536261037
7Aston Villa2210663334-136
8Manchester CityMan City2110563829935
9Fulham228953430433
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2171043229331
11Brentford2284104039128
12Crystal Palace226972528-327
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd217592629-326
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham2275102743-1626
15Tottenham HotspurSpurs21731143321124
16Everton203891526-1117
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves2144133148-1716
18Ipswich TownIpswich2137112037-1716
19Leicester CityLeicester2235142348-2514
20Southampton2113171347-346


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!