FLINT BLUNTS RUSTY BLADES

ADEN FLINT struck a last-gasp winner as away-day specialists Bristol City kept pressure on the Championship’s top two with a win at promotion rivals Sheffield United. Until the giant defender side-footed in at the far post it appeared the division’s top scorer Leon Clarke’s 10th goal in six matches had earned a point for 10-man United, who also hit the woodwork four times. But Lee Johnson’s team made their numerical advantage count after John Fleck was shown a straight red on the hour for scything through Korey Smith to move three points ahead of their opponents and three behind Cardiff in second. United had peppered the impressive Frank Fielding in the first period and had already struck the goal frame on three occasions when Jamie Paterson gave City a 43rd-minute lead. United had dominated

until that juncture: Mark Duffy’s 20th-minute free-kick from the left side of the penalty area thudded off the inside of an upright, and Billy Sharp struck the crossbar twice in a couple of minutes. Fielding then pushed a Clarke header on to the underside of the bar. But Paterson silenced Bramall Lane when he jinked this way and that before thrashing a 20-yard drive past Simon Moore. Clarke altered the atmosphere two minutes after the restart by firing the ball into a similar spot following a surge up the United right. However, Fleck’s red card changed the complexion of the match before Flint pounced at the death.