Peter Crouch needed just two minutes after coming
off the bench to strike the decisive blow as Stoke
City defeated Hull City 1-0 on Saturday.
Crouch headed home with his second touch after
coming on as a second-half substitute at the
Britannia Stadium, ending Hull’s recent resurgence.
A lacklustre, scrappy first half ended without a
single effort on target from either team.
Charlie Adam’s introduction at the break gave
Stoke a lift, but his two early efforts on Allan
McGregor’s goal both went wide.
Adam then turned provider for Crouch in the 72nd
minute, as he lifted an inch-perfect cross into the
penalty area for the veteran striker to nod home in
trademark fashion.
Stoke – unchanged from last weekend’s victory
over Aston Villa – made a promising start, but were
unable to turn possession in the final third into
efforts on goal.
Victor Moses and Steven N’Zonzi both made good
runs from midfield in the opening 15 minutes, only to
be wasteful in the penalty area when under
pressure.
Steve Bruce was forced into changes with Nikica
Jelavic injured and Dame N’Doye dropped to the
bench after returning home to Senegal, and Hull’s
play was affected early on.
It was not until the 20th minute that the visitors
were able to pose a threat, as Sone Aluko skipped
past Philipp Wolscheid but was unable to hit the
target from a tight angle.
A scrappy end to the half saw Stephen Ireland lucky
to stay out of the book for a tackle on David Meyler,
but opportunities on goal were at a premium, with
the hosts seeing a penalty appeal waved away
when Aluko challenged Phil Bardsley.
Adam replaced Ireland at half time and he gave
Stoke a spark in the early moments after the
restart, the Scot driving narrowly wide with a long-
range effort after 54 minutes.
The former Liverpool and Blackpool midfielder went
agonisingly close to breaking the deadlock soon
after, as he sent a 20-yard free kick just wide.
But with the game seemingly drifting towards a drab
draw, a lovely move between Stoke’s two
substitutes finally opened the scoring.
Adam collected the ball 25 yards from goal and
played an inviting cross towards the back post,
where Crouch rose above Paul McShane to head
past McGregor.
posted from Bloggeroid
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