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Watford climbed above Leeds to claim third place in the Championship table thanks to Chris Eagles first-half goal.

Watford were hanging on for half-time against lowly Brighton when Eagles moved on to a header from the home goalkeeper and drove the ball straight back into the unguarded net from around 45 yards. “Chris didn’t have very far to run back to the halfway line, that’s for sure,” said the manager Adrian Boothroyd.

“We’ll never play you again!” chirped the chorus, briefly and tediously. There was a time when that was very nearly true. Not now, you suspect: you wouldn’t want to book your hotel for next season’s Brighton versus Watford fixture, but we’ll be back before too long, unless Adrian Boothroyd’s implausible journey becomes more extraordinary still. Perhaps the truth is that we’ll never play here again. Perhaps we’ll return to a club with its future certain and secure, at long last.