London clubs crash

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33966, 6 October 1975, Page 26

London clubs crash

<N.ZP. A.-Reuter —Copyright) LONDON.

Queen’s Park Rangers and West Ham United, the high-flying London clubs, came a double cropper at the week-end, losing their unbeaten records and enabling Manchester United to catch them at the top of the first division English soccer table. When Stan Bowles put Queen’s Park Rangers ahead from a penalty they must have felt the tide had turned, but two goals by another of Leeds's Scotland squad, Peter Lorimer, swung the points. West Ham disappointed their own fans by losing to Everton, thus reversing the fortunes of the two teams in European competition three days earlier. West Ham’s John McDowell unwillingly helped an Everton header past his owm goal-keeper for the only goal.

Manchester United missed the opportunity of leapfrogging over both London rivals by failing to beat its

Ivisitor, Leicester, the only first division team without a win this season. They top the league jointly with Rangers, with equal goal averages. West Ham’s goal average is fractionally lower, but it has a match in hand. Leeds’s victory’ carries it to within one point of the leader. It has a match in hand of Derby County, whose victory leaves it, too, bracketed on 14 points. SECOND DIVISION In the second division Sunderland’s goal-less draw at Portsmouth left it a point clear of Notts County, with Fulham, who pulled off a good win at Blackbum, one point further back. Bolton’s five-goal win over newly-promoted Charlton carried it firmly into the chasing group. ENGLISH LEAGUE Division one.—Arsenal 2. Manchester City 3; Birmingham 2, Sheffield United 0; Coventry 1, Burnley 2; Derby 1, Ipswich 0; Leeds 2, Queen’s Park Rangers 1; Liverpool 2 Wolverhampton 0; Manchester United 0 Leicester 0; Middlesbrough 0. Aston Villa 0; Newcastle 2. Tottenham 2; Norwich 0. Stoke 1; West Ham 0. Everton 1. Division two.—Blackbum 0, Fulham 1; Blackpool 3. Luton 2; Bolton 5, Charlton 0; Bristol

Rovers 4, Nottingham Forest 2; Chelsea 0, York 0; Hull 0, Southampton 0; Notts County 1, Bristol City 1; Oxford 2. Orient 1; Plymouth 2, Carlisle 1; Portsmouth 0, Sunderland 0; West Bromwich 1. Oldham 1. Division three.—Aidershot 2, Southend 1; Cardiff City 3, Wrexham 0; Chester 0. Hereford 1; Chesterfield 3, Preston 0; Colchester 0. Bury 0; Gillingham 1, Halifax 1; Millwall 1, Mansfield 0; Port Vale 0, Crystal Palace 0; Rotherham 0, Swindon 2; Sheffield Wednesday 2, Peterborough 2; Shrewsbury 1, Brighton 2; Walsall 2, Grimsby 0. Division four.—Bournemouth 1, Barnsley 1; Brentford 1, Newport 3; Cambridge 1, Darlington 0; Crewe 0, Hartlepool 0; Lincoln 4, Swansea 0; Rochdale 0, Exeter 1; Scunthorpe 2, Reading 1; Watford 1, Stockport 1; Workington 0. Huddersfield 2; Northampton 2, Doncaster 1; Southport 1, Bradford 2; Tranmere 7, Torquay 1. SCOTTISH LEAGUE Premier division. —Celtic 3, Hearts 1; Dundee United 3, Ayr 2; Hibernian 1, Dundee 1; Rangers 1. Aberdeen 0; St Johnstone 2, Motherwell 1. Division one.—Airdrieonians 3, Dumbarton 0; East Fife 3, Arbroath 1; Falkirk 1. Clyde 2; Hamilton 1, Partick 2; Kilmarnock 3, St Mirren 1; Morton 1, Dunfermline 1; Queen of the South 2, Montrose 1. Division two.—Alloa 1, East Stirling 0; Berwick 0. Albion 1; Brechin 1, Queen’s Park 0; Clydebank 1, Raith 1: Cowdenbeath 2 Stranraer 1; Forfar 3, -Stem housemulr 1; Stirling 5, Meadowbank Thistle 0.