Source: Daily_Mail
Fulham 4 Notts County 0: Zamora's reality check for League Two dreamers
The reluctance of the 4,500 Notts County fans to turn their backs and file away from Craven Cottage yesterday, even after a lesson in clinical finishing, could be easily explained. Days like these may be a long time in coming again. Premier League status belongs on the banks of the Thames, not the Trent. [LNB]Given the broken financial promises the County supporters swallowed earlier this season, there is no longer any certainty about anything, even their club's existence. [LNB]With Sven Goran Eriksson gone, a wage bill beyond their means to sustain, a date with the taxman in the High Court and the likely departures of the players who have transformed them into League Two promotion candidates - Kasper Schmeichel and striker Lee Hughes among them - reality is about to bite back into life at Meadow Lane.[LNB][LNB] Perfect start: Simon Davies puts Fulham in front at Craven Cottage[LNB] [LNB]MATCH FACTSFulham (4-4-2): Schwarzer 7; Baird 6, Hughes 6, Hangeland 6, Shorey 5; Duff 7 (Riise 75min, 6), Murphy 7 (Greening 70, 6), Etuhu 6, S. Davies 7; Elm 5, Zamora 7 (Okaka 75, 6).Notts County (4-1-4-1) Schmeichel 7; Thompson 7, Edwards 5, Hunt 5, Jackson 5; Clapham 7 (Rodgers 62, 6); Westcarr 6 (Hawley 85), Ravenhill 7, Bishop 6, B. Davies 7; Hughes 6 (Hamshaw 85).[LNB]Man of the match: Bobby Zamora[LNB]Referee: Alan Wiley[LNB]In the past week they have been sold for £1 to former Lincoln City chairman Ray Trew, Eriksson has quit as director of football, their debts have been revealed as close to £4million and a £300,000 tax bill threatens their survival.[LNB] It is a long way from the heady days of last July when they were taken over by Middle Eastern consortium Munto Finance, with an ambitious plan to lead the oldest club in the Football League to the Premier League within five years. [LNB]Fulham, in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup for the second successive season, host Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk in the Europa League on Thursday. Twenty four hours earlier, Notts host Grimsby Town in a re-arranged League Two fixture.[LNB] Notts caretaker-manager Dave Kevan said: 'We've thoroughly enjoyed our cup run and it was a great pleasure to come up against such a good side here. We have to transmit that into League Two football now.[LNB] At the double: Bobby Zamora fires home Fulham's second goal[LNB] 'We were sorry to see Sven and Tord Grip leave the club. Sven phoned me and said that we could beat Fulham. Hopefully I'll speak to him on the way home.' [LNB]It would be easy to sympathise with the Notts fans for the fall their club is about to take. The truth, however, is that without over-spending to attract the likes of Schmeichel and Hughes, they may not have made it to Craven Cottage at all.[LNB] Try talking to the fans of League Two clubs over whom they have bought an advantage this season for an alternative definition of fairness.[LNB]Three and easy: Damien Duff celebrates after scoring Fulham's third goal[LNB]A second-minute Bobby Zamora shot aside, County created the better chances in the opening 20 minutes. Craig Westcarr shot just wide and then the impressive Ben Davies forced an acrobatic tip-over from Fulham keeper Mark Schwarzer.[LNB] At that point, it was difficult to tell which was the Premier League side, not because Notts were playing above their level but because Fulham were simply abysmal. [LNB]A straightforward move midway through the first half changed all that. Danny Murphy picked out the run of Simon Davies and the Welshman used the body of his marker John Thompson to shield his shot from the view of goalkeeper Schmeichel as it rolled into the far bottom corner. [LNB]Four minutes before half-time, another neat Fulham move involving Nicky Shorey and David Elm ended with Zamora chesting the ball down and volleying it home in a single movement. [LNB]Notts kept pressing forward. A Hughes header and a Davies shot both flew just over. But when Damien Duff latched on to a superb ball from Zamora and drove the ball past Schmeichel, the game was up.[LNB] Fulham manager Roy Hodgson withdrew Murphy, Zamora and Duff to save them for Donetsk and substitute Stefano Okaka sprang the offside trap to give the scoreline a one-sided look. [LNB]Hodgson said: 'Notts County gave us a good game and we knew that the quality of their football would belie their league position. It was a potential banana skin and we're very glad we didn't slip on it. [LNB]'We were in the Cup quarter-finals last year as well, then Manchester United came here and thumped us, which we haven't quite forgotten yet. [LNB]'A trip to Wembley would mean a lot to us and be a major step forward in the progression that we're trying to make at this club.'[LNB] Applying the gloss: Stefano Okaka scores Fulham's fourth goal[LNB] Roy Hodgson homing in on his biggest prize - an FA Cup with FulhamKasper Schmeichel's exit will save League Two Notts County £200kFA Cup sixth round draw: Chelsea head for potential Man City showdownFULHAM FC
