Potters held by Lions
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Stoke were held to a 1-1 draw yesterday at the New Den, when they faced Millwall. The two teams currently have the best form of the First Division, and so beforehand it promised to be an exciting encounter.
The Potters were missing key men Ade Akinbiyi and Richard Johnson for the fixture, but took the lead after just 3 minutes.
A free kick deep in the Stoke half wasn't cleared by the Millwall defence, the ball falling to Clive Clarke 30 yards from goal. Taking one touch, he struck the ball sweetly over the goalkeeper from 25 yards out, to put the Potters in the lead. The early strike though was not enough to secure victory for Stoke, as a cross from the left wing wasn't cleared by the Potters defence, and Daniel Dichio- on loan from West Bromwich Albion- levelled the tie with a header after 25 minutes.
Tony Pulis, the Stoke manager, later claimed he was very happy with the outcome of the fixture, despite the Potters having some of the better chances to secure victory. "They're a good team, with some good players" Pulis commented after the game.
Stoke's run of excellent form continues then, with 23 points being obtained from their previous 9 games- 23 from a maximum of 27 points. Victory at the New Den however, would have equalled the all-time Stoke record of consecutive away wins, of 4 wins.
The Potters were missing key men Ade Akinbiyi and Richard Johnson for the fixture, but took the lead after just 3 minutes.
A free kick deep in the Stoke half wasn't cleared by the Millwall defence, the ball falling to Clive Clarke 30 yards from goal. Taking one touch, he struck the ball sweetly over the goalkeeper from 25 yards out, to put the Potters in the lead. The early strike though was not enough to secure victory for Stoke, as a cross from the left wing wasn't cleared by the Potters defence, and Daniel Dichio- on loan from West Bromwich Albion- levelled the tie with a header after 25 minutes.
Tony Pulis, the Stoke manager, later claimed he was very happy with the outcome of the fixture, despite the Potters having some of the better chances to secure victory. "They're a good team, with some good players" Pulis commented after the game.
Stoke's run of excellent form continues then, with 23 points being obtained from their previous 9 games- 23 from a maximum of 27 points. Victory at the New Den however, would have equalled the all-time Stoke record of consecutive away wins, of 4 wins.