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SMASH ’N’
GRABBAN
LEWIS Grabban rescued a point for
nottingham Forest with his first strike
in seven games to keep them on
course for the play-offs.
The forward (above) won’t mind that
his 17th goal of the season was
arguably his messiest, sticking a foot
out to divert the ball past a startled
aynsley Pears after Joe Lolley’s
deflected effort ballooned in the air.
The shock of tumbling into the
relegation zone had brought out the
best in Middlesbrough, who looked on
course for their first win since new
Year’s Day. They hit back from a goal
down to lead through rudy Gestede
and Lewis Wing, and yet still remain
stuck in the bottom three after
Grabban’s late heartbreaker.
Gestede cancelled out ryan Yates’
28th-minute opener with his eighth
goal against Forest – comfortably his
best tally against any opponent.
Whatever boro’s fate this season,
they have a hot prospect in Hayden
Coulson. Moments after Forest broke
the deadlock, he raced on to Gestede’s
lay-off forcing keeper brice Samba to
tip his shot around the post.
and the 21-year-old was the
architect behind boro’s second just
before half-time, charging upfield and
laying off for Wing. Samba got a hand
to Wing’s shot but was unable to
prevent the ball spinning into the net.
It was quite a turnaround
considering boro’s woeful scoring
record and Forest’s ability to hang on
to the lead. but then Grabban had the
last word when he pounced late on.
Middlesbrough 2 N Forest 2
Middlesbrough: Pears 5, Howson 6,
Shotton 7, Moukoudi 6, Johnson 6, Clayton
7, McNair 6, Tavernier 6 (Spence 87), Wing
7 (Saville 81), MOTM Coulson 8, Gestede 6
Forest: Samba 5, Cash 6, Figueiredo 7,
Worrall 6, Ribeiro 6, Watson 6, Yates 7
(Bostock 78, 5), Lolley 6, Semedo 5
(Diakhaby 56, 6), Ameobi 6 (Carvalho 69,
5), Grabban 7
reF: Darren England At t: 18,884
West Brom v neWcastle
fa cup
5 th rnd: KO 8pm
LET’S
LifT
Toon
gLoom
TV TIMES: Live on BBc
Red Button
WEST BROM^ NEWCASTLE
Bond^ Darlow
furlong^ Yedlin
ajayi^ Lascelles
Bartley fernandez
Gibbs^ Rose
Harper^ Hayden
Barry^ Bentaleb
Brunt^ Ritchie
phillips almiron
austin^ Lazaro
Edwards^ Joelinton
PROBABLE TEAMS
Bruce believes Cup cheers
up the fans.. and gives his
team a boost in the Prem
bY Ian Murtagh
ste Ve bruCe wants FA
Cup joy to sweep away the
dark clouds hovering over
Newcastle.
Victory in tonight’s fifth-
round tie at West Brom would
leave the Toon just 90 minutes
away from a first trip to
Wembley in 20 years.
And Bruce believes a Cup
run won’t just cheer up long-
suffering fans, but can act as a
springboard towards Premier
League survival.
An alarming slump in form
has increased fears Newcastle
are braced for a third relega-
tion in the Mike Ashley era.
But Bruce won’t allow a run
of one win in 10 to temper his
belief that Cup success has a
positive effect on league form.
“It’s a big week coming up,”
he said. “And I hope we can
give everyone a lift. Let’s have
something to look forward to
rather than doom and gloom.
“We’ve got 5,000 going,
which is unbelievable. Let’s
embrace it. Let’s go there and
give it a go. The season is still
all to play for.
“We’ve got 32 points with 10
games to spare and if someone
had told me in August that
would be the case, I’d have
taken it. And yes, I believe a
win in the Cup can help our
league form.”
With five points separating
his side from the drop zone,
Bruce has no option but to
consider Saturday’s trip to
Southampton and so may not
risk Jonjo Shelvey, Dwight
Gayle and Allan Saint-
Maximin tonight.
Shelvey and Gayle
(left) are only just back
from long lay-offs, while
Saint-Maximin’s
hamstring is a worry.
striker who almost guarantees
that you are going to score.”
“Those kind of guys are
difficult to find and that’s why
they cost so much.
‘‘With someone like him
around you don’t panic when
it’s 0-0 with 20 minutes to go.”
trying to prove himself and
impress me every single day.
“He’s not happy when he
isn’t playing but
he’s a positive
character.
He is the
kind of
Striker Austin, 30, has largely
been brought on from the
bench this season but still
has nine goals. Bilic
(left) said: “Of
course he
wants to
play. He’s
hotshot austIn fIts baggIes’ bIl
SLAvEN BiLiC will call on
Austin’s powers to shoot West
Brom into the last eight
tonight.
Charlie Austin (right), a
£4million summer buy from
Southampton, is desperate to
impress the Baggies boss.
bruce is targeting
glory in the Cup
to lift the mood
for his players
and fans
IN WITH A
SHOUT