Tag Archives: Aug30

30th August 2025- Championship, Watford 2 Southampton 2

Watford Observer Pre-Match coverage: Southampton team news: Kwadwo Baah, Mattie Pollock and Othmane Maamma updates

Paulo Pezzolano and Valon Behrami discuss why Watford signed Nampalys Mendy

Paulo Pezzolano wants Watford to flex their muscles against Southampton

Watford Observer: RECAP: Watford 2-2 Southampton

Five talking points as Watford draw with Southampton

Match report: Irankunda does it again as Watford draw 2-2 with Southampton

Pezzolano confirms imminent Andrews departure: ‘This is a good opportunity for him’

Paulo Pezzolano: ‘Nestory Irankunda hasn’t accomplished anything yet’

BBC: Southampton and Watford both scored late free-kicks in an entertaining draw at Vicarage Road in the Championship.

Sky: First, Ryan Manning curled his left-footed low set-piece shot into the bottom corner of Egil Selvik’s net to put a rebuilding Southampton side on the verge of a second away win of the season. Then, Watford’s Nestory Irankunda, who had posed a threat all match, used his right foot to take the aerial route past Southampton keeper Gavin Bazunu and into the top corner.

BHappy: It’s “only” a point, and we “only” have five after four games. Nonetheless, you’d need a heart of stone to be unexcited by the direction of travel. Chak, Wiley, Maamma, at least one Mendy still to come in, Louza to return from suspension. A head coach who is bold enough to make decisive moves to win a game, smart enough to bring his team to salute the Rookery before kick-off, decent enough to give Ryan Andrews a brief cameo on his way out of the door despite the very evident heat of the moment. The Switzerland-bound full-back was propelled in front of the Rookery for a final “one of our own” salute as the team returned on the final whistle.

Fran’s Watford Blog: I think we were all expecting Southampton to be tricky opponents and that proved to be the case, but the Hornets matched them and did very well to come from behind on two occasions to win a very creditable point. The goals were, of course, the main talking points. Having watched some painful VAR decisions in the televised games before the match, I was glad that it wasn’t in play for our first goal. It was notable that this was created by two substitutes with Vata’s forward ball met by a powerful strike from Baah. Then Irankunda showed that his free kick last week wasn’t a fluke with another beauty that gave the keeper no chance. Mike had recorded the goal and it was a joy to see it again. Nestory was tremendous all game, and I was pleased to see both Baah and Irankunda on the pitch at the same time. They will cause problems for many teams in this division. The early goal was disappointing, but the Hornets generally defended well from that point on.

30th August 2022- Championship, Watford 2 Middlesbrough 1

This game was the 100th anniversary of the first ever game played at Vicarage Road.

https://www.watfordfc.com/post-match/watford-mens-team-middlesbrough-first-team-2022-08-30/statistics

BBC Sport: Vakoun Bayo scored a stoppage-time winner for Watford as they beat Middlesbrough 2-1 on a historic night at Vicarage Road.

Sky Sports: Watford wore black and white striped shirts – a replica of the kit they wore in 1922 – for this one after the centenary had been marked by a pyrotechnics display, Elton John music and chats with former Hornets favourites.

BHappy: The thing is, it isn’t like anywhere else.  Other places…  homes, schools, where you work… might have similar long standing but nowhere has this permanence in significance and role.  None of it looks like it did when I first came in 1980, not even the now-more-green-than-brown stuff in the middle.  There are no longer busses visible trundling along the top of the northern end of the ground.  There’s no longer a hotchpotch of bits of stand and terracing down the east side, nor is there any longer a place where you can swap panini stickers (is there?). The Shrodells Stand has long gone, as has the Watford Observer Clock (though – spoiler alert – only as far as the Museum’s excellent commemorative exhibition).

Fran’s Watford Blog: We had been told to be in our seats at 7:45, so duly obliged and were treated to hearing Lloydy and Mapps talk about their happy memories of Vicarage Road.  Nigel Gibbs, who was working with the Tottenham U-21s had recorded a message for the big screen.  I had joined a twitter space on Sunday where Gibbsy was a guest.  Hearing him talk about Watford as both a player and a fan was so heart-warming.  There was a wonderful video shown while “I’m Still Standing” played to accompany pyrotechnics around the ground.  Then the team came out to Z-cars, which was followed by Chariots of Fire ringing out.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/62641671

30th August 2014- Championship, Watford 4 Huddersfield Town 2

Beppe Sannino’s final programme notes.

http://watford.fcdb.info?id=5126

Championship side Watford scored twice after being reduced to 10 men to secure a 4-2 win against Huddersfield. Keith Andrews headed in a corner after Gabriel Tamas’s 65th minute sending off and Almen Abdi curled in a late right-footed strike to secure the points.

There had been questions before the game, more were raised during the ninety-plus minutes and we’ll get to those, I suppose.  But for the moment revel again in that fabulous final half hour or so, which in the manner of a cup-tie blew away all concerns, quibbles, tactics, formations.  Primal, ferocious and utterly captivating entertainment.  Who could fail to be carried away by it?

While I’ve been writing this report, the news of Beppe Sannino’s departure has broken.  In my few encounters with Beppe, I found him a very engaging man, but I hadn’t always been a fan of the way his teams played.  There were a lot of dreadful performances last season and the last encounter with Huddersfield was certainly one in which you felt that the players had no respect for the manager.  That was also my impression at the end of season dinner.  When Beppe took the stage to make his speech, there was little warmth or respect emanating from the tables of players who were just next to us.  I was amazed that he was still in charge at the start of the season.  The fact that he has now left suggests that the Pozzos have found his replacement.  Someone described the contrast of the Zola and Sannino reigns as being from a holiday camp to a boot camp.  I hope that the new manager is somewhere in the middle.  We have a huge amount of talent in this team, with some organization and discipline we could be unbeatable.

30th August 2008- Championship, Watford 2 Ipswich Town 1

http://watford.fcdb.info/index.php?page=matches

BBC Sport: Watford’s John-Joe O’Toole scored in the dying minutes to secure a come-from-behind win over Ipswich.

BHappy: Forget the detail. Forget the football. When was the last time we had as much fun at a football match? Or a celebration to match that of the winning goal?

Mirror, 1 Sep 2008
Daily Telegraph, 1 Sep 2008
https://www.soccerbase.com/matches/results.sd?date=2008-08-30
https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-championship/30-august-2008/

30th August 2003- New Division One, Watford 2 Gillingham 2

http://watford.fcdb.info?id=4562

Danny Spiller’s first senior goal denied Watford their first win of the season in an entertaining game at Vicarage Road.

BSAD imageBSAD report: It took less than ten minutes for the restoration of Heidar Helguson to a forward role and the introduction of Lee Cook on the left wing to be thoroughly vindicated, in practice as well as in theory. And the latter set up the second too, enabling Danny Webber to score his first goal in a proper Watford shirt (and a “Davis – 11” vest).

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Taken from the programme on 13th September 2003- New Division One, Watford 3 Millwall 1

Screen Shot 2017-08-30 at 17.48.26
Screen Shot 2017-08-30 at 17.49.56
13th September 2003- New Division One, Watford 3 Millwall 1

30th August 1999, Premier League, Leicester City 1 Watford 0

http://watford.fcdb.info/index.php?page=matches
Daily Telegraph, 31 Aug 1999
Guardian, 31 Aug 1999
Evening Standard, 31 Aug 1999

“You-are-Nationwide”, they sang. Well, we’ll see. But if the Hornets do return whence we came come May, there are some things that I for one won’t miss. One of these is the hint of desperation with which clubs like Leicester (and Wednesday, two years ago) attempt to impress upon you that they are a big club, long-enough established in the top flight to call themselves “Premiership”. Wednesday are currently finding out that this illusion is a veneer that doesn’t take much scraping away; Leicester, too, is a club that will be all too easily sucked into the maelstrom should their current more than capable side break up.

All in all, this was a disappointing performance; the defence was under pressure all night because we could not threaten their goal, not even on the counter. We got what we deserved on the night, and were fortunate not to get a hiding.

https://www.soccerbase.com/matches/results.sd?date=1999-08-30
https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/premier-league/30-august-1999/