Blades bounce back
By Paul Higham. Last Updated: January 1, 1970 1:00am
Sheffield United's first win at Millwall in two decades was an eventful affair with The Blades coming from a goal behind in the second half without a goalkeeper.
Blades keeper Paddy Kenny was sent off by referee Iain Williamson along with Millwall captain Kevin Muscat during half time.
The two players were involved in a scuffle inside the tunnel and neither man resurfaced on the pitch for the second half.
Neil Warnock rarely keep a spare custodian on the bench and defender Phil Jagielka was forced to don the gloves to keep goal for the second period.
The stand-in keeper was exposed, as The Lions took the lead with Mark Phillips heading in his first goal for the club.
Peter Sweeney's free kick from the left exposed Jagielka's lack of goalkeeping experience and Phillips rose to nod in the opener from the far post.
United rallied, however, and substitute Andy Liddell (pictured) scored with a superb free kick on 77 minutes that was too good for on-loan Arsenal keeper Graham Stack.
Diminutive left back Derek Geary then popped up with six minute left to become an unlikely hero for The Blades.
Geary chested the ball down before unleashing a thunderous 30-yard volley that flew past Stack, as the former Sheffield Wednesday stopper to grab his first goal for Warnock's side.
United's first win at Millwall for 20 years showed their great fighting spirit, and it will go down as one of their most eventful matches in recent times.
Matches
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npower Championship
Table
npower Championship
| Pos | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cardiff City | 46 | 87 |
| 2 | Hull City | 46 | 79 |
| 3 | Watford | 46 | 77 |
| 4 | Brighton and Hove Albion | 46 | 75 |
| 5 | Crystal Palace | 46 | 72 |
| 6 | Leicester City | 46 | 68 |
| 7 | Bolton Wanderers | 46 | 68 |
| 8 | Nottingham Forest | 46 | 67 |
| 9 | Charlton Athletic | 46 | 65 |
| 10 | Derby County | 46 | 61 |
| 11 | Burnley | 46 | 61 |
| 12 | Birmingham City | 46 | 61 |
| 13 | Leeds United | 46 | 61 |
| 14 | Ipswich Town | 46 | 60 |
| 15 | Blackpool | 46 | 59 |
| 16 | Middlesbrough | 46 | 59 |
| 17 | Blackburn Rovers | 46 | 58 |
| 18 | Sheffield Wednesday | 46 | 58 |
| 19 | Huddersfield Town | 46 | 58 |
| 20 | Millwall | 46 | 56 |
| 21 | Barnsley | 46 | 55 |
| 22 | Peterborough United | 46 | 54 |
| 23 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 46 | 51 |
| 24 | Bristol City | 46 | 41 |
Kevin Muscat
Derek Geary
Phil Jagielka
Paddy Kenny
Mark Phillips
