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15th April 2023- Championship, Watford 2 Bristol City 0

WFC.Net Goal Commentary: 1  2

Attendance: 19,148

BBC Sport: The Hornets got off to a great start when Harry Cornick’s own goal gave them a sixth-minute lead, but were grateful to goalkeeper Daniel Bachmann who made a number of first-half saves. City should have levelled early in the second half when Nahki Wells saw an effort saved, but soon after they were 2-0 down thanks Joao Pedro’s powerful effort.

Sky Sports: While the home side rarely looked convincing and saw their woodwork struck twice in the second half, Watford nevertheless still retain a chance of making the play-offs.

BHappy: Earlier in the half, a “Pozzo Out!” banner made its way solemnly along the foot of the Lower GT.  Those responsible, whilst surely not hoping for yet another defeat, might have had mixed emotions at the state of the game and would surely have enjoyed noisier support had the scoreline been reversed.  As it was there was a rumble of appreciation from the Rookery which had died away by the time the banner reached the halfway line.  Indeed, a slightly surreal accompaniment was provided by a youngster behind us who gleefully rolled through the João Pedro “always believe in your soul” song in utter indifference to the dwindling protest to his left as it made a rather painful journey down the north end of the pitch.

Fran’s Watford Blog: Once the teams had been announced, Richard Walker said, “Please put your hands together for former Watford manager and current Bristol City manager, Nigel Pearson.”  The applause for Nigel was very appreciative and it was good to see him wave to the home crowd to acknowledge it.

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15th April 2019- Premier League, Watford 0 Arsenal 1

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Referee:
Craig Pawson
Attendance:
20,480

Watford lose to Arsenal after Troy Deeney red card

Watford beaten at home by Arsenal as Troy Deeney is sent off

Javi Gracia said Watford captain Troy Deeney owes him no explanation after Arsenal red card

Watford players performances rated from Arsenal defeat

A selection of images as 10-man Watford push Arsenal all the way

Javi Gracia is not blaming Watford’s players for their mistakes against Arsenal

A Ben Foster howler and a needless Troy Deeney red card helped Arsenal climb back into the Premier League top four with victory at Watford.

It is sometimes said that teams play better with ten men and this certainly applied to Watford for the remainder of the half. Craig Cathcart went close in the 20th minute with a close range effort, but was denied by the leg of Bernd Leno.

“I don’t agree [it was a red card],” said Gracia. “Troy put his arm there but there was no contact with his elbow. I never saw an aggressive movement. I don’t understand why the referee took the decision.” The Spaniard’s frustration was clear but he was also right to praise his team for how they reacted to the loss of their leader. As was the case at Wembley, Watford showed resilience in the face of adversity and created enough chances to feel they were somewhat unfortunate to suffer their first loss here since Boxing Day.

As it happened

The majority of Graham Taylor’s most successful players, of either era, experienced the pinnacles of their careers at Watford. We all did it together, but they bought into it, at least partly, because it was a passport out of the lower divisions. That isn’t the case this time around. The real triumph of this season has been to reconnect the modern reality of the Premier League with a basic idea of Watford Football Club, of what it is in our heads and hearts, of what it once was in Graham Taylor’s imagination. It’s true that times have changed, and we’re not going to bump into Etienne Capoue in Our Price. But it feels as if this is a group of players which understands – or has been made to understand, whatever – why this football club actually matters. (A small part of why it matters is Z-Cars, incidentally. Hands off.)

When a match falls on 15th April, you can’t help but think of the events at Hillsborough 30 years ago.  On that day, I was standing on the terrace at the County Ground, Swindon.  Don was propped up on a crush barrier next to me and a police officer told us that a wall had fallen down at the cup semi-final between Liverpool and Forest. On the coach on the way home we listened to the horror unfolding on the radio.  I still find it hard to believe that 96 fans just like me went to a game that day and didn’t come home. What is even harder to take is that those lives were used for political grandstanding and their families have had to fight for justice for so long.  As Bill Kenwright said, “They picked on the wrong mums.”  I have always thought that what happened to them could have happened to any of us, so we all stand together in the fight for justice.

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15th April 2017- Premier League, Watford 1 Swansea City 0

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WFC.NET image Clips of Jon Marks’ commentary

Goal 1

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http://watford.fcdb.info?id=5247
Watford Observer

Relive – Etienne Capoue’s strike the difference as Hornets sink Swans

Hornets reach 40 points with Swans success

Mazzarri not admitting Watford are safe yet

RATINGS: Defence on song in Swans win

Prodl eyes top 10 finish

BBC Sport Swansea defender Alfie Mawson made a costly error as his side were beaten by Watford at Vicarage Road to remain two points adrift of Premier League safety.

sky Swansea’s slide towards relegation continued on Saturday as Etienne Capoue’s first-half goal sealed a narrow 1-0 win for Watford in an error-strewn encounter at Vicarage Road.

guardian Paul Clement believes the visit of Stoke next Saturday is a must-win game for his Swansea side as they remain embroiled in the battle for Premier League survival.

Independent Swansea City’s relegation worries are deepening after an Alfie Mawson mistake handed Watford’s Etienne Capoue the winner at Vicarage Road and left Paul Clement’s side win no wins in six games and still sitting in the bottom three of the Premier League.

BHappy image I’ll just come right out with it. I’ve been seeing someone else.

FranDue to the lack of an Easter programme in the Premier League, we only had one game this weekend, so I felt oddly cheated but determined to make the most of the one that we had. 

English Premier LeagueTable »
Crystal Palace2-2Leicester City
Everton3-1Burnley
Southampton0-3Manchester City
Stoke City3-1Hull City
Sunderland2-2West Ham United
Tottenham Hotspur4-0Bournemouth
Watford1-0Swansea City
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15th April 2000- Premier League, Southampton 2 Watford 0

https://www.watfordfcarchive.co.uk/fixture/2000-04-15
Sunday Telegraph, 16 Apr 2000
Observer, 16 Apr 2000

BSAD: We actually played rather well here. For four minutes. The problem being that our defence is once again so fragile that we give ourselves the smallest chance. The seconds tick by before the inevitable self-destruction and consequent confidence crash, the only hope being that we can score in the meantime. So you can blame Micah Hyde for his first minute miss, slashing wide after a fine move down the left involving Tommy Smith and David Perpetuini. Or you can blame the later errors which made that miss so crucial.

https://www.soccerbase.com/matches/results.sd?date=2000-04-15
https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/premier-league/15-april-2000/
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15th April 1978- Division Four, Watford 1 Southend United 1

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The Match Of The Day cameras attended the game to see us presented with the Fourth Division trophy.

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http://watford.fcdb.info?id=3229

Watford Observer match report

Sunday Mirror, 16 Apr 1978
Sunday People, 16 Apr 1978
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15th April 1969- Division Three, Watford 1 Plymouth Argyle 0

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This win promoted us to the second tier of English football for the first time in our history.

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Daily Mirror, 16 Apr 1969
Daily Telegraph, 16 Apr 1969
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sy of Stephen Danzig

Watford Observer match report

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27th March 2004- New Division One, Watford 1 Wigan Athletic 1
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15th April 1963- Division Three, Watford 1 Colchester United 1

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http://watford.fcdb.info?id=2470
Daily Herald, 16 Apr 1963

Watford Observer match report

https://www.soccerbase.com/matches/results.sd?date=1963-04-15
https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-three/15-april-1963/
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15th April 1960- Division Four, Watford 4 Chester 2

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http://watford.fcdb.info?id=2314
Liverpool Echo, 16 Apr 1960
Evening Sentinel, 16 Apr 1960

Watford Observer match report

https://www.soccerbase.com/matches/results.sd?date=1960-04-15
https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-four/15-april-1960/

11th April 2026- Championship, Oxford United 2 Watford 0

Watford Observer: Oxford call for ‘relentless support’ on Saturday – can Watford rise to the occasion?

Team news: Maamma set for return, Abankwah and Kayembe fully fit

Bove needs more time and Kjerrumgaard ‘hasn’t quite been on it’, says Still

Pre-season planning ongoing – but not Still’s priority for now

Still on Oxford: ‘I want our fans to see we wanted it more’

Watford Observer: MATCHDAY AS IT HAPPENED: Oxford United 2-0 Watford

Match Report: Abject Watford beaten 2-0 at Oxford United

Pollock asks to apologise publicly after ‘lowest point’ of his Watford career

Still on Watford fans’ reaction: ‘You have to stand up and take it’

BBC: Oxford United moved within a point of Championship safety and extended their unbeaten run at the Kassam Stadium to five matches with victory over out-of-form Watford.

Sky: Watford, who have a poor away record this campaign, were on a winless streak of three going into the game but they had beaten the U’s 2-1 at Vicarage Road at the start of October.

Fran’s Watford Blog: It had been a very poor performance with only Irankunda coming away with much credit. He created some decent chances and, if one had gone in, it would have been a different afternoon. Maamma was also bright when he came on and showed how much we have missed him. But apart from them, it was a miserable afternoon of football.

From the Rookery End: On From The Rookery End this week, Jon and Mike are joined by Watford Observer’s Adam Drury after Watford’s defeat at Oxford — but rather than pick apart another bad away day,the take a step back and the conversation goes bigger.

6th April 2026- Championship, Watford 1 Charlton Athletic 1

Watford Observer: Still on Charlton: All we can do after bad results is bounce back

Watford Observer: MATCHDAY AS IT HAPPENED: Watford 1-1 Charlton Athletic

Five talking points as Watford forced to settle for a point

Match Report: Irankunda equalises but Watford held to 1-1 Charlton draw

Coady lost consciousness after blocking shot, Jones confirms

Still takes confidence from ‘completely dominating’ second half against Charlton

BBC: Nestory Irankunda’s emphatic finish earned Watford a point and denied Charlton Athletic a first win in four matches in a chance-laden Championship draw at Vicarage Road.

Sky: Charlton’s Conor Coady was stretchered off being struck in the head by a venomous shot by Tom Ince. The former England international had lengthy treatment on the pitch.

BHappy: Irankunda levels after being released by Louza, a fine, confident, Premier League finish, and then thumps in an evil bouncing bomb that Mannion pushes away. Goglichidze, who’s had an erratic afternoon, gets on the end of a deep cross but heads criminally wide. I can sense Hutch combusting from half the stadium away. Shots are repeatedly fired in but are repelled, most tellingly and representatively when Conor Coady commemorates the 500th appearance of his career by getting in the way of a Tom Ince piledriver. He is knocked out cold interrupting play for a good ten minutes, the incident encapsulating Charlton’s dogged defiance in the face of mounting pressure.

Fran’s Watford Blog: There was applause at the end of the game after a terrific second half in which the Charlton keeper kept them in the game. It was a wonderful attacking performance from the Hornets. Irankunda was immense, running at the defence and hitting great shots. On another day, he would have had a hat trick. Chakvetadze also had a great game. He was unplayable at the start of the second half, constantly running at the Charlton defence and, unlike in previous outings, taking several shots. Long may that last. Nabizada built on his showing against QPR, putting in a very assured performance with no fear of crossing and shooting. I have admired his play in the U18s and U21s, so it is great to see him looking the part in the first team. Due to the extensive injuries, the defence is cobbled together with some square pegs in round holes and Goglichidze in particular had a poor game. I cannot make my mind up about him as he seems to alternate assured performances with absolute mares. In the end it was a game we should have won, but mid-table obscurity now beckons.

From the Rookery End: Jon, Jordi, Mike and Kieran are on presenting duties after Watford’s Easter weekend fixtures — a 1-1 draw at home to Charlton on Easter Monday, coming hot on the heels of the 2-1 defeat away at QPR on Good Friday.

3rd April 2026- Championship, Queens Park Rangers 2 Watford 1

Watford Observer: Team news: Watford down to ‘bare bones’ with Bola among doubts for QPR

Still exploring reasons behind injuries but believes it’s largely bad luck

Watford still aiming to ‘create some magic’ this season

‘Not many teams can win 6-1 in the Championship’ – Still on QPR threat

Watford Observer: MATCHDAY AS IT HAPPENED: QPR 2-1 Watford

Match Report: Watford lose 2-1 at QPR in flat display

Still: ‘The lack of consistency has caused us problems’

Micro and macro reasons behind Watford’s defeat at QPR

Still will analyse why key attackers are struggling to score

BBC: Paul Smyth scored one goal and made another as QPR claimed a third successive win to all but end lacklustre Watford’s already slim hopes of sneaking into the Championship play-off places.

Sky: Imran Louza pulled a goal back with a superb 85th-minute free-kick, but the visitors were unable to find an equaliser.

Fran’s Watford Blog: It had been a poor performance from the Hornets whose injury-ridden squad struggled. The first start for Bove was not an impressive one. Maybe he was too keen to make an impression, but his great touch was little in evidence, and he committed a series of rash tackles, that endangered his presence on the pitch. Kjerrumgaard generally struggled although he did have an excellent strike early on which, had it gone in, would have changed the game. There was a lively finish to the match, as the introduction of Baah injected some energy. This game featured the good Baah, who is always fun to watch. Louza’s goal was a thing of beauty and made sure that there was some tension in the final minutes. But my highlight was the debut of Nabizada. I have seen some excellent performances from him at U18 and U21 level and it was good to see him take his opportunity in the first team. He started a bit slowly, but grew into the game and put a few decent crosses into the box. I hope that this is the first of many first team outings for him.

21st March 2026- Championship, Watford 0 Leicester City 0

Watford Observer: Still on whether he judges himself on points or performances

Still not focused on the ramifications of Leicester game

Watford Observer: MATCHDAY LIVE: Watford 0-0 Leicester City

Five talking points as Watford held to Leicester stalemate

Match Report: Selvik saves penalty as Watford and Leicester slog to goalless draw

Still: Watford played through the pain barrier and wanted ‘close game’

BBC: Patson Daka had a penalty saved as relegation threatened Leicester City were held to a goalless draw by play-off chasing Watford.

Sky :Daka’s 40th-minute spot-kick was brilliantly tipped on to the post by home goalkeeper Egil Selvik. The striker also headed wide of a near open goal in the second half as the Foxes failed to climb out of the bottom three.

BHappy: Forgive me, I know that ranting about referees is unspeakably dull and I wouldn’t for one moment suggest that his performance had anything to do with the disappointing outcome of this game, but I do need to try to extract some pleasure from the exercise. As the second half descended into mind-numbing stalemate, Smith seemed determined to inject some randomness into proceedings with a series of absurd decisions in both directions. The most bizarre, a yellow against Doumbia which saw him drop to his knees in astonishment after he held off an aggressive challenge from behind. In the first half, the official had dropped the ball and run off the pitch and down the tunnel during a break in play that contributed to eight minutes being added before the interval; one can only assume that in the interim some sort of alien abduction took place, or an unwise experiment with hallucinogenic drugs such was his performance in the second half. No surprise at all that when Bobby Decordova-Reid obstructed Egil Selvik’s attempt at a clearance even the Norwegian, that mildest-mannered of mild-mannered janitors, was at a boiling point that saw a significant scuffle ensue. “That was the ref’s fault”, said everyone in the stadium (as well as the interfering extra-terrestrials, one assumes).

Fran’s Watford Blog: There was disaster for the Hornets ten minutes before the break as Fatawu went on a dangerous run into the box, getting behind Formose Mendy who tripped him. The referee had no choice but to point to the spot. The penalty was at the same end as Knockaert’s all those years ago and Selvik did an Almunia by diving the right way and pushing Daka’s shot onto the post where it rebounded out sparking joyous celebrations in the home stands

From the Rookery End: Watford served up the full emotional buffet this week — from the genuine high of a feel-good win over Wrexham (and that moment), to the all-too-familiar frustration of a stop-start, slightly baffling 0-0 with Leicester.

17th March 2026- Championship, Watford 3 Wrexham 1

Watford Observer: Minute’s applause for Amelia Aplin to be held during Wrexham game

Doumbia out to set the tone on decisive night at Vicarage Road

I’m not a fan of the club using AI to create images, especially not of legendary players. The back row here looks like they got together a load of look a likes.

Watford Observer: MATCHDAY LIVE: Watford 3-1 Wrexham

Five talking points as Watford win to keep play-off hopes alive

Match Report: Bove seals the deal as Watford bounce back to beat Wrexham 3-1

Still: ‘We did the basics right – that’s the big positive’

GALLERY: Best images of Bove’s Rookery End goal and celebration

BBC: Watford kept their Championship play-off hopes alive while denting those of Wrexham by beating the Red Dragons at Vicarage Road.

Sky: Goals from Marc Bola and Edo Kayembe did the damage for the Vicarage Road outfit and although Max Cleworth pulled a goal back for the hosts, Edoardo Bove netted his first Hornets goal in stoppage time.

Fran’s Watford Blog: On 15 minutes, there was a minute’s applause in memory of Watford fan, Amelia Aplin, who passed away after collapsing while playing in goal for Oxford Academy. As fans at both ends of the ground stood to applaud, the ball went out for a throw and the game paused while the players and officials joined in the applause. It was a wonderful tribute, and I doubt there was a dry eye in the stadium.

14th March 2026- Championship, Stoke City 3 Watford 1

Watford Observer: Watford working on aggression and playing forwards ahead of ‘tough’ Stoke clash

Stoke trip is a test of whether Still is making Watford better

Still – ‘The only question is how to win – 4-4-2, 3-4-3, I don’t care’

Watford Observer: MATCHDAY AS IT HAPPENED: Stoke City 3-1 Watford

Match Report: Play-off hopes hanging by a thread as Stoke beat wasteful Watford 3-1

Still insists Watford’s season is not over after Stoke defeat

Still adamant Watford have the strength of character to do better

Another season fades away as Watford can’t master the art of winning

Irankunda left out because ‘he can’t rock up, expect to start and not perform’

BBC: Million Manhoef’s brace helped Stoke return to winning ways with a comfortable victory at home to Watford.

Sky: The Dutch winger found the net either side of half-time before Sam Gallagher added a third late on just after Nestory Irankunda’s stunning strike had pulled one back for the Hornets.

Fran’s Watford Blog: There were very few travelling Hornets left in the away end at the final whistle. The players were greeted with a mix of sympathetic applause and boos. One fan near the front expressed his dismay in such a way that Bola reacted angrily and came over to remonstrate with him. Pollock followed and ushered him away.

From the Rookery End: Back behind the mic, Jon and DCW look back on a bruising week for Watford after a frustrating draw at Sheffield Wednesday and a damaging defeat at Stoke. There’s talk of missed chances, flat performances, fading playoff hopes and what Ed Still can realistically get out of this squad in the final stretch. The lads also hear from the Watford Observer’s Adam Drury, who was at the bet365 Stadium and shares what Ed Still had to say in the aftermath of the defeat. Plus, with Wrexham and Leicester up next, they ask what there is still to play for — and whether simply finding some stability might be the biggest win of all.