Bristol City 2 Norwich City 1

Last updated : 29 March 2008 By Footymad Previewer
Steve Brooker, with a last-gasp header, sent Bristol City to the top of the Championship in a match they were fighting most of the time to save.

In only his second appearance of the season as a sub, Brooker headed in a free-kick from seven yards, with Norwich protesting the kick should have been theirs anyway.

"Even the fourth official turned to us and said it should have been our kick but there was nothing he could do about it," said Norwich manager Glenn Roeder.

Bristol had surrendered a half-time lead given them by Dele Adebola and in the second half they hardly had a look-in at goal until the winner deep into the three minutes of added-on time.

The game had to rise above a gusting wind and driving rain for most of the time and it did with Adebola battling alone up front against the close marking of Jason Shackell and Alex Pearce.

It looked a losing battle, but the big man never gave up and was perfectly placed at the far post to squeeze home his fifth goal in 12 games since moving from Coventry when the header arrived from Michael McIndoe.

Bristol's manager Gary Johnson made five changes, only one of them forced, as he looked for his first win in six. He found an enthusiastic response, but it was Norwich who were closer to going ahead.

Dion Dublin defying his 39 years with zestful running both in attack and defence in the hour he was on was closest for Norwich when he thundered a header against the crossbar after Jamie Cureton had opened up the home defence.

A minute earlier Mark Fotheringham had seen a vicious free-kick hauled down from under the bar by Adriano Basso.

In the second half Bristol came under more and more pressure and the equaliser arrived with 20 minutes to go, when right-back Bradley Orr let in Darren Huckerby for a 12-yard curler which went in off the far post.