CARDIFF’S LONG WAIT for a first win on their Championship return is finally over after attacker Jack Moylan scored a brace in their 3-1 home victory over Charlton, while fellow Ireland international Johnny Kenny also chipped in with two goals as Preston drew 2-2 with QPR.
The Bluebirds had gone a record-equalling seven games without a win despite dominating several previous matches, but they were full value for their triumph after taking a 2-0 lead in the opening quarter against a Charlton side that came into the fixture sitting in sixth place with only one league defeat.
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Moylan scored the first goal in the eighth minute, teed up Yousef Salech for the second in the 24th and then thundered in his second, and Cardiff’s third, in the 61st after Tyreece Campbell had reduced the deficit.
Charlton’s physicality and pressing meant it took Cardiff some time to settle into their passing rhythm, and the first chance of the game fell to Miles Leaburn after good work down the left flank from Karlan Grant and Campbell.
Once they found their composure, the Bluebirds conjured up a great first goal from Moylan. It started, as with so many of Cardiff’s best moves, with Chris Willock on the left edge of the box before moving infield to Andy Robertson.
Robertson then passed forward; Moylan stepped over the ball to let it roll on to Salech, who then passed back to the Irishman on the edge of the ‘D’ to give him a clear shot on goal, and he buried the ball in the right-hand corner to give his side a dream start.
Willock had a shot that was heading into the same corner, pushed wide by Arthur Okonkwo in the Charlton goal, but Cardiff came again and doubled their lead in the 24th minute.
This time it was Moylan who returned the favour to Salech as he sent an inch-perfect pass across the six-yard box to allow the striker to tap home his fifth goal of the season in all competitions.
Charlton looked stunned, but they were quick to respond, and five minutes later Campbell ran on to a superb through ball from Tyler Bindon that cut the Cardiff lines and gave his striker a one-on-one with Nathan Trott in the home goal, and he made no mistake.
Okonkwo was called on to pull off a great save from Salech before the break, and Joel Colwill should have done better in front of goal when he had a chance to add to Cardiff’s tally.
There was still all to play for after the break, and things might have been different had Cardiff old boy Grant not hit the side netting instead of the back of the net after picking up a poor back pass.
Then came Moylan’s second just past the hour mark. He worked the ball out of Ollie Tanner on the right edge of the box, took a return pass and fired home an unstoppable shot into the top-right corner to make the game safe.
Brian Barry-Murphy, the head coach/manager of Cardiff city celebrates after the game. Alamy Stock Photo
Cardiff boss Brian Barry-Murphy hailed his side’s win and paid tribute to his fellow Irishman afterwards: “It was a very important game for us. We felt as if we’d been playing reasonably well and we have to do it again. We knew today’s game was going to be tough, but we played a great game, created really good chances and we took enough of them to win.
“We obviously had a real awareness of what Charlton do and how effective they can be, but we got into the spaces we needed to and created good chances. I was particularly pleased with the response to conceding the goal because that was obviously a test for us.
“We bounced back pretty much straight away and kept creating good chances. In the second half, I felt as if we ran out deserving winners.
“You don’t always get what you feel you deserve. We were clear with the players that there were certain games where we weren’t at our best, but we had full belief that if we kept playing the way we were playing and managed to score the goals we felt we would, we could win the game.
“We felt as if we were bringing a player who would improve the squad when we bought Jack Moylan. He has qualities we probably didn’t have before.
“He’s a very dangerous player in the situations you saw him in today. The big appeal for us was because of where he’s come from; he has a lot of improvement in him. The way he’s working means he will improve a lot and become a great player for the club.”
Johnny Kenny scored his first two goals of the season (file pic). Alamy Stock Photo
Paul Smyth scored a 90th-minute equaliser for 10-man QPR as they came back from two goals down to draw 2-2 with struggling Preston.
Kenny’s first goals for North End – including an opener after 64 seconds – left them in a great position in their first match since the sacking of boss Paul Heckingbottom.
But Kwame Poku pulled a goal back for Rangers midway through the second half and Smyth’s late strike rescued a point for the West London side.
A run of six defeats from seven games left Preston bottom of the Sky Bet Championship, and this week cost Heckingbottom his job.
But Irish striker Kenny, a recent signing from Celtic, put them in control at Loftus Road, scoring from the first attack of the game and then doubling their lead after Rangers’ Dennis Cirkin had been sent off.
First-team coach Jason Euell, placed in caretaker charge following Heckingbottom’s exit, could not have wished for a better start.
Stan Mills’ long ball should have been routinely dealt with by Jimmy Dunne near the halfway line, but the R’s skipper hesitated, and Kenny robbed him before racing through and slotting past goalkeeper Pierce Charles.
Worse followed for Rangers on the quarter-hour mark when Cirkin was shown a red card after clattering into Leo Leroy.
Andrew Hughes should then have made it 2-0 but headed Alfie Devine’s cross wide of the target when unmarked.
That was a let-off for Rangers, but they were punished for more sloppy defending in the 26th minute.
Mills burst into the box from the right-hand side, Ronnie Edwards and Nicolas Madsen attempted to stop him but got in each other’s way, and Kenny met the resulting loose ball with a low first-time shot into the far corner of the net.
That left QPR battling against the odds, but they did create openings, the first of which came just before half-time when Poku was just unable to connect with Kealey Adamson’s cross.
Rangers continued to attack after the break, and Edwards volleyed wide; substitute Koki Saito also fired past a post, and both Madsen and Amadou Mbengue sent shots over the crossbar.
They were rewarded for their persistence with a goal after 66 minutes – winger Poku’s first for the club.
Dunne was crowded out as he tried to flick on Smyth’s long throw, but Poku skilfully created some space for himself near the edge of the penalty area and thumped a low shot past Daniel Iversen.
Preston then had to cling on, with both teams hitting the woodwork as Rangers searched for an equaliser.
Callum Lang’s header from Andrija Vukcevic’s cross hit the top of the bar and, at the other end, Alfie Lloyd hit the bar shortly before being denied by Iversen at point-blank range.
Iversen could do nothing about Smyth’s 20-yard rocket but did produce another fine save in the final seconds, this time to deny Madsen.
In League One, Alex Gilbert scored his first goal since joining Leyton Orient as they beat Stevenage 1-0.
In the same division, Dan Casey scored for the second league game in succession, as Wycombe overcame Wigan 1-0.
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Two Irish attackers score braces in Championship
Updated at 17.20
Championship results:
CARDIFF’S LONG WAIT for a first win on their Championship return is finally over after attacker Jack Moylan scored a brace in their 3-1 home victory over Charlton, while fellow Ireland international Johnny Kenny also chipped in with two goals as Preston drew 2-2 with QPR.
The Bluebirds had gone a record-equalling seven games without a win despite dominating several previous matches, but they were full value for their triumph after taking a 2-0 lead in the opening quarter against a Charlton side that came into the fixture sitting in sixth place with only one league defeat.
Moylan scored the first goal in the eighth minute, teed up Yousef Salech for the second in the 24th and then thundered in his second, and Cardiff’s third, in the 61st after Tyreece Campbell had reduced the deficit.
Charlton’s physicality and pressing meant it took Cardiff some time to settle into their passing rhythm, and the first chance of the game fell to Miles Leaburn after good work down the left flank from Karlan Grant and Campbell.
Once they found their composure, the Bluebirds conjured up a great first goal from Moylan. It started, as with so many of Cardiff’s best moves, with Chris Willock on the left edge of the box before moving infield to Andy Robertson.
Robertson then passed forward; Moylan stepped over the ball to let it roll on to Salech, who then passed back to the Irishman on the edge of the ‘D’ to give him a clear shot on goal, and he buried the ball in the right-hand corner to give his side a dream start.
Willock had a shot that was heading into the same corner, pushed wide by Arthur Okonkwo in the Charlton goal, but Cardiff came again and doubled their lead in the 24th minute.
This time it was Moylan who returned the favour to Salech as he sent an inch-perfect pass across the six-yard box to allow the striker to tap home his fifth goal of the season in all competitions.
Charlton looked stunned, but they were quick to respond, and five minutes later Campbell ran on to a superb through ball from Tyler Bindon that cut the Cardiff lines and gave his striker a one-on-one with Nathan Trott in the home goal, and he made no mistake.
Okonkwo was called on to pull off a great save from Salech before the break, and Joel Colwill should have done better in front of goal when he had a chance to add to Cardiff’s tally.
There was still all to play for after the break, and things might have been different had Cardiff old boy Grant not hit the side netting instead of the back of the net after picking up a poor back pass.
Then came Moylan’s second just past the hour mark. He worked the ball out of Ollie Tanner on the right edge of the box, took a return pass and fired home an unstoppable shot into the top-right corner to make the game safe.
Cardiff boss Brian Barry-Murphy hailed his side’s win and paid tribute to his fellow Irishman afterwards: “It was a very important game for us. We felt as if we’d been playing reasonably well and we have to do it again. We knew today’s game was going to be tough, but we played a great game, created really good chances and we took enough of them to win.
“We obviously had a real awareness of what Charlton do and how effective they can be, but we got into the spaces we needed to and created good chances. I was particularly pleased with the response to conceding the goal because that was obviously a test for us.
“We bounced back pretty much straight away and kept creating good chances. In the second half, I felt as if we ran out deserving winners.
“You don’t always get what you feel you deserve. We were clear with the players that there were certain games where we weren’t at our best, but we had full belief that if we kept playing the way we were playing and managed to score the goals we felt we would, we could win the game.
“He’s a very dangerous player in the situations you saw him in today. The big appeal for us was because of where he’s come from; he has a lot of improvement in him. The way he’s working means he will improve a lot and become a great player for the club.”
Paul Smyth scored a 90th-minute equaliser for 10-man QPR as they came back from two goals down to draw 2-2 with struggling Preston.
Kenny’s first goals for North End – including an opener after 64 seconds – left them in a great position in their first match since the sacking of boss Paul Heckingbottom.
But Kwame Poku pulled a goal back for Rangers midway through the second half and Smyth’s late strike rescued a point for the West London side.
A run of six defeats from seven games left Preston bottom of the Sky Bet Championship, and this week cost Heckingbottom his job.
But Irish striker Kenny, a recent signing from Celtic, put them in control at Loftus Road, scoring from the first attack of the game and then doubling their lead after Rangers’ Dennis Cirkin had been sent off.
First-team coach Jason Euell, placed in caretaker charge following Heckingbottom’s exit, could not have wished for a better start.
Stan Mills’ long ball should have been routinely dealt with by Jimmy Dunne near the halfway line, but the R’s skipper hesitated, and Kenny robbed him before racing through and slotting past goalkeeper Pierce Charles.
Worse followed for Rangers on the quarter-hour mark when Cirkin was shown a red card after clattering into Leo Leroy.
Andrew Hughes should then have made it 2-0 but headed Alfie Devine’s cross wide of the target when unmarked.
That was a let-off for Rangers, but they were punished for more sloppy defending in the 26th minute.
Mills burst into the box from the right-hand side, Ronnie Edwards and Nicolas Madsen attempted to stop him but got in each other’s way, and Kenny met the resulting loose ball with a low first-time shot into the far corner of the net.
That left QPR battling against the odds, but they did create openings, the first of which came just before half-time when Poku was just unable to connect with Kealey Adamson’s cross.
Rangers continued to attack after the break, and Edwards volleyed wide; substitute Koki Saito also fired past a post, and both Madsen and Amadou Mbengue sent shots over the crossbar.
They were rewarded for their persistence with a goal after 66 minutes – winger Poku’s first for the club.
Dunne was crowded out as he tried to flick on Smyth’s long throw, but Poku skilfully created some space for himself near the edge of the penalty area and thumped a low shot past Daniel Iversen.
Preston then had to cling on, with both teams hitting the woodwork as Rangers searched for an equaliser.
Callum Lang’s header from Andrija Vukcevic’s cross hit the top of the bar and, at the other end, Alfie Lloyd hit the bar shortly before being denied by Iversen at point-blank range.
Iversen could do nothing about Smyth’s 20-yard rocket but did produce another fine save in the final seconds, this time to deny Madsen.
In League One, Alex Gilbert scored his first goal since joining Leyton Orient as they beat Stevenage 1-0.
In the same division, Dan Casey scored for the second league game in succession, as Wycombe overcame Wigan 1-0.
Additional reporting by Paul Fennessy
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