Bristol City’s wonderful wingers, Dave Smith and Mark Gavin, ripped Fulham apart as the home side recorded a fantastic 5-1 win at Ashton Gate this afternoon.
This defeat deepens the west London side’s fears of relegation but such a devastating outcome looked remote when Jeff Eckhardt fired the visitors in front in the twelve minute after Smith and Ronnie Sinclair had calamitously collided with one another when trying to clear a cross from Steve Milton.
The home fans gave voice to their disapproval and the discontent around the ground continued until Nicky Morgan poached an equaliser from close range eleven minutes before the break after David Rennie had headed Gavin’s free-kick against the crossbar. Suddenly, Fulham were jittery at the back – and the visiting defence almost gifted City a second goal, with Jim Stannard at full stretch to ensure Mark Newson’s poorly-judged backpass didn’t fly the defender’s own net.
But the hosts didn’t have to wait long for their second. Gavin’s vision result in a glorious through ball that Eckhardt and Martin Pike appeared to leave to one another. As the Fulham defenders hesitated, Smith surged away from the visiting back line and skipped around a seething Stannard before slipping the simplest of finishes into the empty net.
City extended their lead just before the hour mark. Defender David Rennie headed on a Gavin corner and Rob Newman forced in the third from close range at the back post. It was then simply a matter of how many the home side were going to end up with. It took only a minute for Gavin to completely bamboozle the Fulham defence once more and supply Iain Ferguson with a shooting chance to make it 4-1.
Eleven minutes from the time, Smith sprinted clear down the opposite flank and set up Gary Shelton, who drove a shot beyond Stannard’s despairing dive. The Robins could easily have registered a more resounding victory. Ferguson had another goal chalked off for offside before Stannard saved from the Scottish striker in the closing stages. Fulham substitutes Clive Walker and Gordon Davies both came close to making the scoreline more respectable for the Londoners – who have work to do if they are going to remain in this divison.
BRISTOL CITY: Sinclair, Newman, Bailey, Humphries, Pender, Shelton, Rennie, Smith, Morgan, Gavin, Ferguson. Subs (not used): Turner, Honour.
GOALS: Morgan (36), Smith (42), Newman (59), Ferguson (60), Shelton (79).
FULHAM: Stannard; Eckhardt, Nebbeling, G. Thomas, Pike, Newson, Scott, Skinner (Davies 79), Barnett, Milton, M. Cole (Walker 59).
BOOKED: Scott.
GOAL: Eckhardt (12).
REFEREE: Howard King (Merthyr Tydfil).
ATTENDANCE: 16,139
