People love to talk about the "magic" of the FA Cup where the minnows take on the sharks. This was on full display when Leyton Orient equalized right at the death against Arsenal to tie 1-1 on Sunday. The Gunners were cruising before we witnessed the most surprising goal of the weekend. It was the stuff of dreams -- though Arsenal should take care of business when the two meet again at the Emirates.
We also had a penalty shootout between Chelsea and Everton on Saturday, which came after 120 minutes of fairly uneventful soccer. The Toffees might not be a minnow, but given the way their season is going, the upset added a feel-good element to the weekend.
But in the middle of all this cup action, there was a solitary Barclays Premier League match on Sunday. It was a vital derby at the wrong end of the table, Wolves versus West Brom. And from this high-energy encounter, where players hit-and-hoped and got stuck in on tackles at almost every turn, fans were treated to the magic of a relegation battle between two teams desperately trying to stay afloat as the season clocks down.
It turned out to be a real scrap, frantic and dramatic, with the Baggies equalizing in stoppage time to earn a 1-1 draw. In fairness, West Brom should have tallied at least another goal or two. In one of the most entertaining passages of play, from about the 55th to 59th minute, Wolves keeper Wayne Hennessey was forced to make a fingertip save, which was followed by a terrific block by George Elokobi. At one point, a rattled Ronald Zubar tried to clear the ball, but ended up hitting it so high and straight into the air that it looked like he used a pitching wedge instead of his foot.
Nerves will do that to you when your team stands at the precipice of Championship football.
As Wolves defended and invited pressure, West Brom attacked. In the 63rd minute, Peter Odemwingie showed exquisite control to head the ball down to Marc-Antoine Fortune for a tap-in if there ever was one, but he couldn't settle his feet. Throughout the match, Fortune got himself into good positions but didn't do enough with his chances. Which pretty much summed up West Brom's day.
You can only hope that new manager Roy Hodgson got some R&R since being sacked by Liverpool about a month ago, because he's going to need one of those stress balls to survive the season's run-in. He started the match on the bench, his usual stoic self. But as chances went begging, he made his way to the technical area. Around the 60th minute, he was wringing his hands like a man about to stand trial for murder. Twenty minutes later, Hodgson was muttering to himself. Thankfully, Carlos Vela, on loan from Arsenal, scored the equalizer to spare us from that all too familiar scene at Liverpool, where Hodgson did his best to rub every last feature off his face.
If you were looking for exceptional technique and style, you weren't going to find it at the Hawthorns on Sunday, where a chewed-up pitch helped contribute to inconsistent and unpredictable play. But this wonderfully intense rivalry showcased the kind of inspired atmosphere you can only get with a relegation dogfight.
Wolves, for their part, continue to look destined for the Premier League scrap heap. While Mick McCarthy's men defended valiantly for much of the game, and while Jamie O'Hara -- on loan from Spurs -- was a bright spot with his stunning strike in the 39th minute, Wolves also shut down in stoppage time. When you see how they gave James Morrison so much time on the ball at the edge of the box to get his shot off -- the one that led to Vela's goal -- it seems likely that the only thing this club will be doing at the end of May is collecting its parachute payment.
Then again, look at the congestion on the EPL table. The 10th-place team, Stoke, is only six points from the drop zone. Everton, Aston Villa and Birmingham are all just three points from safety. One point separates Blackpool from the bottom three of Wolves, Wigan and West Ham United.
You can crunch the probabilities and permutations all you want, but there's going to be a lot of sleepless nights for a lot of players and managers. It isn't good news for them, but for neutrals who enjoy a good dustup between desperate teams, it's going to be magic. Even more, I dare say, than the FA Cup.
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