Miller takes three as Baggies demolish Bristol Rovers
Sunday, 09 Mar 2008 20:11
Ishmael Miller scored a hat-trick as the Baggies won 5-1
An Ishmael Miller hat-trick helped West Bromwich Albion beat League One Bristol Rovers 5-1 in the fourth FA Cup quarter-final.
The scoreline belied a strong Pirates performance for the first 60 minutes, but West Brom showed their superiority to finish the game off in style at the Memorial Stadium.
After a weekend of upsets it was almost no surprise when Bristol Rovers started well, with Championship side West Brom forced into defence in the early stages.
Out of that came the game's opening goal, with keeper Steve Phillips failing to gather a Roman Bednar shot. His parry was sent into the back of the net by a grateful James Morrison who made no mistake.
The game appeared to be over when Miller scored his first and most impressive strike. He received a long ball well and came in from the right-hand-side with an imperious left-footed strike on the half-hour.
Bristol Rovers came back in the next minute with an instant reply from a corner. No one was marking the near post, allowing Craig Disley to flick on to Danny Coles who coolly finished.
Controversy followed on the stroke of half-time, as Miller appeared to go down in front of an open goal after passing the keeper's outstretched arm. Replays showed he had slipped and missed a simple chance.
The second half began strongly for the home side, who though still trailing held most of the possession for the opening 15 minutes.
But Miller, sweeping the ball horizontally as he fell over, showed his strength to put the game beyond Bristol.
Kevin Phillips powerfully finished after receiving a reverse pass via a touch from Miller, his forward momentum to extend the Baggies' lead.
And a short while later Miller completed the victory by completing his hat-trick, sending the ball into the corner of the net from a pass by Zoltan Gera.