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Boys in Green

Irish Eye: Duffer hits his half-century at Blackburn

Damien Duff hit the 50-goal milestone on Saturday, but he wasn’t the only familiar face to get his name on the scoresheet. Here’s how the Boys in Green got on across the water this weekend.

EVERY MONDAY, WE scan the passports, check the family trees and cross-reference with the “granny rule” to keep you informed about the ups and downs of all the Irish (and Irish-eligible) footballers in England and Scotland. Think of us as the Tardelli to your Trap, if you will…

Premier League

Robbie Keane (Aston Villa 1-1 Everton) Keane made a 10-minute cameo at the end of Villa’s draw against Everton, but it wasn’t enough time for the Ireland skipper to conjure up a late winner. His former international teammate Stephen Ireland continued his recent resurgence when he set up Darren Bent for the game’s opening goal, while at the other end, Shay Given made a point-blank stop from Louis Saha to deny the visitors all three points. Darron Gibson was handed his Everton debut by David Moyes and played 84 minutes.

Damien Duff (Blackburn Rovers 3-1 Fulham) Damien Duff’s second-half strike against 10-man Blackburn was the winger’s 50th in the Premier League, but it wasn’t enough to stop Fulham from falling to a 3-1 defeat.

Shane Long (West Bromwich Albion 1-2 Norwich City) Long was left out of West Brom’s attack on Saturday in favour of Simon Cox and Peter Odemwingie, but he made an almost immediate impact after coming off off the bench, scoring a penalty in the 68th minute.

Leon Best (Newcastle United 1-0 Queens Park Rangers) Best ensured that Mark Hughes’ first game as QPR manager ended in defeat. The Newcastle striker carved out a brilliant opportunity in the 38th minute, turning back inside Luke Young before angling his finish past Paddy Kenny.

Npower Championship

Adam Rooney (Millwall 0-6 Birmingham) Rooney came off the bench to join Birmingham’s party at the Den on Saturday. The Dubliner fired home Birmingham’s fourth from the edge of the box in the 81st minute.

David Connolly (Nottingham Forest 0-3 Southampton) Connolly ended a drought when he tapped in from close range on 65 minutes. The goal was his first in the league since the end of October.

League One

Alan Lee (Huddersfield Town 1-0 Oldham Athletic) Less than 24 hours after they were involved in a car crash, Alan Lee and Danny Cadamarteri came off the bench to combine for Huddersfield’s winner. Cadamarteri’s pass set Lee free and the former Ireland international turned his marker to score.

Dave Mooney (Leyton Orient 1-1 Chesterfield) Former League of Ireland man Dave Mooney was another to end a long run without a goal on Saturday. He turned home Lee Cook’s cross just before half-time, his first goal in two-and-a-half months.

Scottish Premier League

Dunfermline 2-3 Hibernian: Leigh Griffiths’ winner five minutes from time gave Hibernian all three points and a bit of breathing space at the foot of the SPL. The win was Hibs’ first in the league since Pat Fenlon took over as manager last month.