Cork is popping for Clarets with third win in row
ROY HODGSON’S hopes of playing a peaky blinder went up in smoke as late goals from Jack Cork and Josh Brownhill all but condemned Watford to relegation and gave Burnley’s survival bid another major boost.
Hodgson, who wasn’t well enough to complete his pre and post-match media commitments, and spent the entire 90-odd minutes rooted to his seat in the dugout, had looked for a long time to have masterminded a win that kept alive the Hornets’ slim hopes of staying up.
As the clock ticked past the 80-minute mark, an early own goal by James Tarkowski (right) still separated the two sides.
But Cork stormed into the box soon after to thump home a deserved equaliser with his head.
And within four minutes, Brownhill had applied a cool finish from 18 yards to spark scenes of mass celebration on the pitch, in the visitors’ technical area and in the away end.
Brownhill led all but one of his team-mates on a pitch-long dash to enjoy the moment with those travelling Burnley supporters. While Ashley Barnes, the odd man out, skidded on his knees, fists pumping in delight, in front of the Watford fans who had been goading him just a few minutes earlier.
Those scenes and the noise in the away end told their own story of the belief Burnley have of staying up after their third successive win.
Caretaker boss Mike Jackson said: “It’s a great result for us.
“It wasn’t our best performance. We didn’t start well, the group knew that, and we had to respond in the second half.
“The games are so emotionally charged you’re not going to get silky football, it’s about finding a way and we did that.”
This defeat for Watford – a record 11th in a row at home, breaking Sunderland’s previous mark – does not mathematically condemn them to relegation with Norwich.
But if they drop another point they are gone and, even if they don’t, so poor is their goal difference that we might as well bid them farewell from the top flight now.
Hodgson’s assistant, Ray Lewington, said: “Whether it is or isn’t us down, we have four games to play and the most important thing is that we don’t just drift away.
“For the players’ self-esteem and for the supporters it’s important we be competitive.”