Mohamed Al-Fayed’s aspiration for Fulham to compete at the highest level of English football has been realised a year ahead of schedue. Jean Tigana’s fabulous side were streets ahead of the competition in Division One this season but it took a late, late winner from Luis Boa Morte to confirm that Fulham will be strutting their stuff in the top tier next season for the first time since 1968.
Struggling Huddersfield were cast in the role of party poopers after Fulham had incredibly beaten their closest rivals for promotion, Blackburn Rovers, 2-1 at Ewood Park with the last kick of the game on Tuesday night having been reduced to ten men. Town gave it a good go, and Delroy Facey did cancel out Louis Saha’s 29th goal of the season, before Boa Morte – a player who has been completely rejuvenated under Tigana at Craven Cottage – sparked more scenes of delight amongst the travelling Fulham fans by racing onto a through ball from Steve Finnan and deftly lifted a finish over Nico Vaesen with five minutes to go.
Huddersfield’s battle against the drop might go to the final day of the season at this rate. They defended stoutly and battled hard against the champions’ elect for much of this afternoon – and, if they replicate this level of endeavour and quality in their final fixtures, they should be absolutely fine. But this was Fulham’s day as evidenced by even the tight-lipped Tigana getting carried away during the impromptu celebrations as he players skirted the manager’s alcohol ban by sharing champagne out of his eyesight.
Boa Morte should have made it a much more comfortable afternoon but he wasted two good chances in the first ten minutes – the worst of which saw him blaze over the crossbar after a flowing move. Clark drilled a long-range strike straight at Vaesen before Boa Morte’s pace, which was Fulham’s most potent weapon, took him clear of the home defence only for his eventual shot to be deflected behind for a corner.
Saha clipped the top of the bar from a Bjarne Goldbaek corner after outjumping his marker and for a while you wondered whether this would be a frustrating afternoon for Fulham – in keeping with much of their history. But Tigana’s side are made of sterner stuff than many of their predecessors in the black and white and Saha smashed home a penalty, which Vasesen was actually unfortunate not to save, when Chris Lucketti had brought down Boa Morte in the box.
Chances came and went for Fulham to clinch the contest, with Clark somehow squeezing a shot wide from six yards, midway through the second half. While the deficit was so slender, there was still a chance for Huddersfield. The hosts never stopped working, with Facey a formidable force at the top of their attack, and he deserved his leveller – even if it arrived against the run of play. He sprinted through the visiting defence, beating Kit Symons for pace, and smartly stroked his finish past Maik Taylor from around twelve yards.
The complexion of the afternoon changed in an instant. Facey went within a whisker of giving Huddersfield the lead with a drive from the edge of the box – and Tigana turned to his bench, summoning both the midweek hero Sean Davis and the experienced German forward Karl-Heinz Riedle. That switch gave Fulham some added impetus but it was Boa Morte who ended Huddersfield’s brave resistance with a lovely finish after Vaesen had dashed desperately from his line, despite not having anything like the pace necessary to reach Finnan’s raking ball ahead of the Portuguese.
HUDDERSFIELD TOWN (4-5-1): Vaesen; Heary, Lucketti, Dyson, Jenkins; Thornley (Gallen 68), Armstrong, Holland, Gorre, Baldry; Facey. Subs (not used): Margetson, Moses, Brennan, Irons.
BOOKED: Dyson, Lucketti, Gallen.
GOAL: Facey (78).
FULHAM (4-4-2): Taylor; Finnan, Brevett, Melville, Symons; Sahnoun (Davis 80), Clark, Goldbaek (Riedle 79), Stolcers; Saha (Moller 89), Hayles. Subs (not used): Hahnemann, Neilson.
GOALS: Saha (pen 66), Boa Morte (85).
REFEREE: Keith Hill (Royston)
ATTENDANCE: 15,882.
