John Eustace's last-gasp goal earned Watford a 2-2 draw with Bristol City at Ashton Gate.
Hornets sting Robins late on
John Eustace's last-gasp goal earned Watford a 2-2 draw with Bristol City at Ashton Gate.
Ten-man City looked to be heading for all three points until Eustace bundled the ball home from close range three minutes into stoppage-time to secure an unlikely point for Watford.
Watford had trailed twice, with Danny Haynes and Paul Hartley scoring either
side of Tom Cleverley's equaliser, while City had Lewin Nyatanga sent off midway through the second half.
Having fallen to defeat at QPR on Boxing Day, City were keen to impress early
on and should have led after three minutes.
Watford defenders Adrian Mariappa and Jay DeMerit both went for the same ball and their error allowed Nicky Maynard to race free. From there he squared for David Clarkson, but the Scotland striker, without a goal since the opening day of the season, could only slice wide.
Maynard then saw a fizzing drive blocked, while at the other end, Henri
Lansbury, whose loan from Arsenal has now expired, drew a smart save out of Dean Gerken.
Helguson, another whose loan spell with the Hornets is now over, then saw a low strike well blocked by Jamie McAllister.
Watford's influence on the game was growing and Helguson had a close-range goal from a free-kick into the box chalked off for offside.
Opener
That let off proved to be the catalyst for City to open the scoring 38 minutes
in.
Clarkson was again involved as he cut the ball back for Maynard, but, after
Lansbury took the ball off the striker's boot, Haynes was on hand to lash home
his fourth of the season.
Their lead was shortlived, though, as Cleverley levelled five minutes later.
The midfielder gave Gerken no chance with a clinical drive from just inside the
area after a poor clearing header from McAllister.
But again, the scoreline changed within minutes, as right on the stroke of
half-time Hartley lashed home a 30-yard free-kick that went in off the underside
of the bar.
Clarkson joined Helguson in having a goal ruled out by the linesman after the
interval following another slip by DeMerit, but Gerken was the busier of the two
goalkeepers at this stage.
Stunning save
He had to produce a stunning one-handed save to deny Danny Graham as Watford probed for a second equaliser, while Scott Loach had to be at his best to keep out Maynard's strike.
Graham continued to forge ahead and was unlucky to see his long-range effort
hacked away by Gerken, while the keeper saved again from Helguson after another hashed clearance by McAllister.
Watford's pursuit of a goal was aided by Nyatanga's dismissal for a second
yellow card issued for a foul on Lansbury but they were again denied by the
officials when Helguson was deemed to have fouled Gerken on his way to scoring with 10 minutes remaining.
And then, when it looked as though their efforts would be in vein, Eustace
struck to earn Malky Mackay's men a point.
