First division leaders held to draws

Press, 30 April 1984, Page 3

First division leaders held to draws

NZPA-Reuter London The race for the English first-division title was no nearer being resolved at the week-end after the leaders, Liverpool, and secondplaced, Manchester United, were both held to draws at home. Liverpool, fresh from its mid-week European Cup semi-final triumph over Dinamo Bucharest in Rumania, found relegationthreatened Ipswich in a determined mood and could only draw, 2-2. United, beaten in its Cup Winners’ Cup tie by Italy’s Juventus, failed to take advantage by playing out a goal-less draw with West Ham, whom Liverpool crushed, 6-0, at Anfield three weeks ago. The results left Liverpool still two points clear of United with four games left. Ipswich took a young and inexperienced team to Anfield, but it was an “old hand,” Eric Gates, who kept alive its hopes of first division football next season. He scored after 18 minutes before a defender, Alan Kennedy, and, almost inevitably, the striker, lan Rush, put Liverpool ahead before half-time. But Gates struck to earn Ipswich a point 12 minutes after the break.

Southampton moved into fourth place with an 8-2 win over Coventry, with eight goals coming in the last 33

minutes. Queen’s Park Rangers beat Tottenham, 2-1 — its first victory over its London rivals — to stay third. Two Southampton strikers, Danny Wallace and Steve Moran, both scored hat-tricks with David Armstrong and the veteran Frank Worthington netting the others. Watford beat Luton, 2-1, but had its skipper, Wilf Rostron, sent off along with a Luton defender, Paul Elliott, shortly before halftime. Rostron will receive an automatic two-match ban beginning ,on May 12, and is now certain to miss Watford’s Football Association (F.A.) Cup final against Everton ,at Wembley on May 19. In Scotland, Eric Black’s goal was enough to give Aberdeen a 1-0 win over Dundee to consolidate its hold on the premier division leadership. It was some consolation for Aberdeen, which relinquished the Cup Winners’ Cup in mid-week when it was beaten by Portugal’s Porto. ENGLISH LEAGUE Division One. — Arsenal 2, Leicester 1; Aston Villa 3, Notts County 1; Liverpool 2, Ipswich 2; Luton 1, Watford 2; Manchester United 0, West Ham 0; Norwich 1, Everton 1; Nottingham Forest 0, Stoke 0; Aueens Park Rangers 2, Tottenham 1; Southampton 8, Coventry 2; Sunderland 2, Birmingham 1; Wolverhampton 0, West Bromwich 0.

Division Two. — Brighton 1, Barnsley 0; Cambridge 1, Newcastle 0; Carlisle 1, Grimsby 1; Charlton 2, Shrewsbury 4; Chelsea 5, Leeds 0; Derby 1, Manchester City 0; Huddersfield 4, Cardiff 0; Oldham 3, Portsmouth 2; Sheffield Wednesday 1, Crystal Palace 0; Swansea 2, Middlesbrough 1. Blackburn v. Fulham to play. Division Three. — Bolton 0, Bournemouth 1; Bradford 1, Brentford 1; Bristol Rovers 3, Lincoln 1; Exeter 2, Preston 1; Newport 1, Oxford 1; Orient 3, Hull 1; Port Vale 2, Burnley 3; Rotherham 3, Gillingham 0; Southend 0, Sheffield United 1; Walsall 3, Wigan 0; Wimbledon 1, Plymouth 0. Played last night: Scunthorpe 0, Millwall 1. Division Four. — Blackpool 3, Hereford 1; Chester 1, Doncaster 0; Chesterfield 1, Bristol City 1; Colchester 3, Torquay 0; Crewe 3, Tranmere 0; Darlington 3, Halifax 2; Northampton 3, Wrexham 3; Reading 1, Bury 1; Rochdale 3, Aidershot 1; York 2, Hartlepool 0. Stockport 4, Peterborough 1; Swinden v. Mansfield to play. SCOTTISH LEAGUE Premier division. — Celtic 3, Hibernian 2; Dundee 0, Aberdeen 1; Hearts 2, St Johnstone 2; Motherwell 1, Dundee United 3; St Mirren 1, Rangers 1. Division One. — Ayr 1, Falkirk 2; Clydebank 1, Morton 1; Dumbarton 2, Clyde 2; Kilmarnock 2, Alloa 0; Meadowbank 0, Airdreonians 4; Partick 1, Brechin 1; Raith 0, Hamilton 2. Division Two. — Arbroath 0, East Fife 1; Berwick 6, Stenhousemuir 1; Cowdenbeath 1, Montrose 0; Dunfermline 5, Albion 0; East Stirling 2, Stranraer 2; Forfar 3, Queen of South 0; Queens Park 3, Stirling 1.