Millwall second but blows opportunity at West Brom
Millwall move back up to second on the EFL Championship table, but would have preferred three points to the one it earned from an uninspiring 0-0 draw at West Bromwich Albion on Saturday (AEST).
Third-placed Ipswich Town can retake the second automatic promotion spot with either a draw or a win at Norwich City in the East Anglia derby, and a Middlesbrough win over lowly Portsmouth as well could knock the Lions back down to fourth before the weekend is out.
Millwall came closest to breaking the deadlock in the first half when Josh Coburn volleyed wide from close range and Mihailo Ivanovic hit the crossbar with a sensatioal strike from distance.
The Baggies improved afte the second half, but failed to hit the target until the 82nd minute, when Millwall goalkeeper Anthony Patterson pulled off a terrific save to deny Jayson Molumby's shot after Millwall's defence had failed to clear a corner.
Indeed West Brom finished the stronger of the two sides, perhaps cogniscent of the points it needs to star clear of the relegation zone, extending its unbeaten run under James Morrison to seven matches.
The result moved the hosts five points clear of the relegation zone, and Morrison felt the result was probably fair given the way the game had played out.
"They had the better of the first 30 minutes. We needed to sort a couple of bits out at half-time and then I thought [in the] second half we were the stronger team, had the bigger chances and kept them away from our goal,: he said.
"I felt we were just a final pass away tonight – the right shot, choosing the right pass.
"The big moment, the goalkeeper's [Anthony Patterson] made a great save so I think overall it's probably a fair result."
Millwall boss Alex Neil insisted that full focus remains on Millwall and not its Championship play-off rivals after dropping points here.
"We're not relying on anybody [else]. Our aim is always to get as many points as possible," he said. "I don't focus on what other teams are going, I only focus on us.
"It's another point on the board, we are focused on getting as many points on the board as we can, a game at a time.
"I always tell the players if you can't win the game, don't lose the game. We take the point, four games to go, we'll try to win them all."
Neil's assessment of the game itself was similar to Morrison's.
"I thought first half we had the better of the game, in terms of clear-cut chances we should score at least one. Josh Coburn's chance is the best of the game," he said.
"We struggled to keep the ball at the top end of the pitch the last 20 or 30 minutes of the game and couldn't muster enough opportunities to win it. I thought if we were going to win it, it would be in the first half if we got the first goal.
"Like I said to the lads afterwards, if you can't win it, just make sure you don't lose it."
