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Laurie Whitwell at Daily Mail |
Wolves (0) 2-2 (1) Fulham ~ Fulham win on penalties
Fulham striker RossMcCormack sent Fulham on a fourth round trip to Sunderland by scoring a penalty with the last kick of extra-time, then converting first from the spot in the shootout eventually sealed by Hugo Rodallega.
Wolves fans were left berating referee David Coote as their team slid out of the FA Cup, angered by his call when McCormack's free-kick was diverted by Lee Evans' arm in the wall.
Reflections will show it was a correct decision, which unfortunately denied Wolves a victory on the night their legendary former owner Sir Jack Hayward passed away.
Heavy snowfall made spotting the FA Cup's salmon ball difficult, but there was no mistaking the sublime finish from Dave Edwards in the 109th minute that looked like it had won this tie for Wolves.
The midfielder connected with a delightful backheel to Danny Batth's cross and went sliding 20 yards in the snowflakes.
The weather was such that fans joked about hardly seeing the ball and a message reading 'I love Wolves' was written on top of the home dugout. To those who want to do away with replays, this was a classic.
Credit to Jackett and Kit Symons for sending their teams out fully intent on securing victory. Despite respective battles at either end of the Championship table, each side attacked throughout.
Fulham bossed the first half, with McCormack to the fore. The £11million striker smacked an early shot from 25 yards that Carl Ikeme palmed wide.
In the 13th minute Sean Kavanagh pulled the ball back to McCormack for a simpler chance inside the box, but he shot wildly off target.
Wolves responded and Liam McAlinden was presented with a glorious opportunity from close range when put clear. He fired a powerful effort but Marcus Bettinelli reacted superbly to block.
The visitors continued to press and went ahead in the 27th minute. Konstantinos Stafylidis found space on the left and delivered a cross that Woodrow rose high to head home. It was a third of the season for the Fulham academy graduate.
Symons should have seen his team extend their lead nine minutes before the interval but Moussa Dembele missed horribly despite rounding Ikeme after McCormack's through ball.
Jackett made two changes at half-time, sending on Dave Edwards and Nouha Dicko, and Wolves improved substantially.
In the 65th minute a Lee Evans corner saw Matt Doherty hit the post with his header then have his follow-up cleared off the line. Dicko rattled the crossbar with a wonderful strike from range soon after.
In the 71st minute, Wolves levelled. Dominic Iorfa raced to the byline and crossed for Edwards to tap in. Two minutes later, Edwards set Van La Parra clear and the winger lifted his finish from over Bettinelli, diving into the stands to celebrate with fans.
It was premature. With 15 minutes remaining Dembele crossed from the left and Woodrow applied a straightforward finish at the far post.
As snow began to fall, the chances continued to come. Edwards sent a shot whistling over, McCormack sent a curling free-kick just wide.
Into extra-time Iorfa did brilliantly to wriggle into space close in and snap a shot that Bettinelli blocked. Kevin McDonald then brought an even better save from the Fulham goalkeeper with a dipping effort from 25 yards.
Edwards scored, then McCormack equalized to see a shootout that required a sweeping of the 12-yard spot to reveal green turf.
McCormack scored again, as did Edwards. Woodrow scored too before Doherty hit wide wide. Stafylidis, Evans, Patrick Roberts, Leon Clarke all scored before Rodallega applied the finishing touch.
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