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Three goals in the first half all but confirmed Kit Symons' sacking as we lost 5-2 to Birmingham City yesterday at Craven Cottage.
The game started well, I guess, with McCormack sending a free kick into the visiting side's wall following a foul on Moussa Dembele, while Demarai Gray managed to get the ball off a sliding Jamie O'Hara and force Joe Lewis into a difficult one-handed save for the visitors.
However, the scoring opened up on the 18th minute, when Jacques Maghoma squared a ball for Stephen Gleeson, who was making a run on goal. He ran with the ball, set his shot up, and fired a 25-yard strike into the right hand side of the goal to make it 1-0.
Then just three minutes later, it was two. Clayton Donaldson was bought down by Lewis' arm in the box, which our goalie was given a yellow for, while Paul Caddis sent the spot kick into the empty side of the net to make it two.
Tim Ream could have made it 2- 1 after the half hour mark, when he managed to find space, but unfortunately drilled his left footed shot over the crossbar.
And then it was three. Maghome made an excellent stretch to stop the ball from rolling over the line, before crossing to Jon Toral, who had planned his shot, recieved the cross, and send the ball into the roof of the net. 3-0 in the first half. A damn shame.
O'Hara sent a free kick against the bar following a foul on Tom Cairney, who was tackled onto the ground 30 yards out before halftime, but the second half made the game even more of a challenge. Shortly after the restart, James Husband was booked for a foul on Gleeson, and then, a minute later, recieved a second yellow for a similar tackle, getting himself a red.
Matt Smith had a shot fly off the post in the 62nd minute, before crossing to McCormack, who was pulled down before he could receieve it, but Alexander Kacaniklic was there to pounce on the ball and send it in at the far post to make the scoreboard 3-1.
Just 20 minutes later it seemed all but over when Birmingham sub Maikel Kieftenbeld had his shot denied by Lewis, before Donaldson hit a nice finish and made it 4-1, while we pulled one back in injury time when Smith blocked a clearance, which McCormack pounced on and scored from, but Viv Solomon-Otabo, who came on as a substitute in the 80th minute, netted a shot with the last kick of the game to make it five.
And then Kit Symons was sacked, so I'm pretty sure this season might be over now.