Source: Eurosport
Peterborough v West Brom - 18 August
Baggies do enough to humble Posh[LNB]West Brom held off a strong Peterborough fightback to claim three hard-earned points in an enthralling 3-2 Coca-Cola Championship victory at London Road.[LNB]Albion were three goals to the good and cruising with 41 minutes on the clock thanks to Luke Moore's brace - the first of which came courtesy of a mistake from Posh keeper Joe Lewis - and Chris Brunt`s first of the season.[LNB]But Peterborough rallied strongly and Craig Mackail-Smith`s diving header gave the hosts hope at the end of a pulsating opening 45 minutes.[LNB]The Championship new boys flew at the Baggies at the start of the second half and Aaron Mclean pulled another back from close range in the 53rd minute.[LNB]London Road erupted shortly after as Posh again had the ball in the net only to see the `goal` rightly ruled out for a foul on Scott Carson.[LNB]But Albion closed out the game, despite Graham Dorrans` 90th-minute dismissal, to make it seven points from their opening three games.[LNB]The big surprise among the pre-match team news was the omission of captain Jonathan Greening from Albion`s matchday 18, raising serious questions over the midfielder`s long-term future after he handed in a transfer request earlier this summer.[LNB]Greening`s shock absence could have had an adverse effect on the Baggies but the visitors flew out of the blocks and grabbed the breakthrough after just three minutes.[LNB]Gabriel Zakuani cheaply surrendered possession to Moore on the edge of the area and he fired a speculative effort towards goal that England Under-21 keeper Lewis allowed to horribly squirm under his body and into the net.[LNB]Albion continued to dominate the early stages and Posh boss Darren Ferguson was forced to adopt a more attacking intent with only 15 minutes on the clock in an attempt to change matters.[LNB]And he soon saw his charges grab a foothold on the game, with Albion keeper Carson called upon to make a great save from Mclean and Mackail-Smith somehow putting wide from close range.[LNB]But West Brom capitalised on the open nature of the game and Moore doubled their lead in the 34th minute, converting from 12 yards after a neat through ball from youngster Chris Wood.[LNB]It was 3-0 shortly before the break as Brunt converted after good work from on-loan debutant Shaun Cummings down the right.[LNB]But there was still time for Mackail-Smith to pull a goal back for Posh with a header from Shaun Batt`s cross, bringing an end to a breathless first half.[LNB]Peterborough really looked to impose themselves at the start of the second half and got their reward.[LNB]The impressive George Boyd put a cross into the box from the left-hand side and Mclean beat Jonas Olsson to poke home from six yards.[LNB]A thrilling encounter looked to take a new twist just minutes later as the hosts had the ball in the net once again but, with London Road celebrating, referee Graham Horwood rightly ruled it out for a foul on Carson.[LNB]Lewis made a smart stop from Moore at the other end just after the hour mark as Albion posed a slight threat.[LNB]But they did enough in the remaining quarter of the encounter to hold on for a hard-fought victory, with Dorrans` dismissal for a bad foul on Charlie Lee a disappointing way to finish.
