Express & Star

West Brom 2 Millwall 0 - Report and pictures

Albion ran out comfortable victors against a toothless Millwall side to gain ground on the Championship leaders with their sixth successive home win in all competitions.

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Dwight Gayle of West Bromwich Albion celebrates after scoring a goal to make it 1-0 (AMA)

After a flat opening hour, two goals in eight second-half minutes from Dwight Gayle and Kieran Gibbs put the game beyond the visitors.

There may not have been as many fireworks as recent victories at The Hawthorns, but it was a routine win that will give Darren Moore's men confidence, particularly at the back, where they kept their first clean sheet in the league.

Victory took the Baggies back into third, and with Leeds losing at home to Birmingham City and Middlesbrough drawing with Swansea, they moved to within one point of the leaders.

The last time these two sides met, Darren Moore and Neil Harris were playing for the clubs they now manage.

On that day in April 2004, the match finished 1-1 and for 60 minutes this fixture was just as close before Albion's superior quality eventually told.

Millwall arrived at The Hawthorns with one point from their last five games, and the Baggies were searching for the sixth straight win at home in all competitions.

Moore made just one change to the line-up that struck four past Bristol City on Tuesday, bringing Chris Brunt back into the side in place of 37-year-old Gareth Barry and the club captain had a solid game at the base of midfield.

It was a much more sedate start to proceedings than midweek, with both teams feeling each other out early on.

Eight minutes in Jake Livermore played a delicious little chip in behind to Matt Phillips, but his attempted pull-back to Gayle was cut out. Three minutes later, Phillips drove inside and slipped Gayle in behind but he was flagged offside.

Albion were probing, but Millwall were standing resolute and 20 minutes in the visitors saw the first real glimpse of goal when Jed Wallace drove in off the flank before benefiting from a lucky ricochet.

The ball fell kindly to the former Wolves winger in a central position on the edge of the box, but he blazed his shot over.

The Baggies had most of the ball, and Livermore was orchestrating most of their play, passing and moving constantly.

Five minutes later he fired the ball into Gayle, who laid it off to Barnes, but he and Rodriguez tried to walk it in the net and the chance went begging.

The Baggies were struggling to break their organised visitors down and half an hour in Gayle went over in the box looking to win his fifth penalty of the season but referee Tim Robinson said no.

There was a nervy moment for the hosts shortly after that when Johnstone came rushing off his line to clear a ball over the top.

He kicked it straight to Wallace who set himself and shot goalwards from 35 yards, lobbing the stranded keeper, but Craig Dawson had raced back and headed it off the line.

And Johnstone was called into action again five minutes later when Jiri Skalak turned a cross goalwards, but Albion's keeper got down well and held the shot.

In truth though, it was an incredibly flat first-half with little goalmouth action at either end.

The Baggies started the second half a little brighter, and within two minutes, Harvey Barnes had fizzed a dangerous ball across goal.

Phillips then wrong-footed Ben Amos with a deflected shot from the edge of the area, but the wing-back had to come off in the 65th minute through injury.

Millwall had enjoyed a brief spell of pressure before that without testing Johnstone, before the Baggies finally broke the deadlock in the 68th minute.

It was a scrappy goal befitting the match, but a poacher's finish befitting Gayle's industry and work ethic.

Brunt's driven corner was met well by Ahmed Hegazi at the back post, and Amos pulled off a smart save to deny him, but the ball looped over to the other side of the goal where Gayle scrambled home his fifth of the season.

The goal gave Albion confidence, and they started zipping the ball around with more purpose. Eight minutes later, they had doubled their lead.

Substitute Tyrone Mears put in an inviting cross from the right hand side that bounced all the way through to Gibbs at the far post.

The wing-back set himself before firing a low shot back across goal and into the bottom corner for his second goal of the season.

Aiden O'Brien wasted a good chance on the counter to get Millwall back in the game with 10 minutes to go before Moore sent on Tosin Adarabioyo and switched to a back four to see the game out.

They did that with relative ease, and have now won their last four league games at home, scoring 15 goals along the way.

It's turned into a promising start.

Key moments

33 Dawson clears Wallace's long-range shot off the line after Johnstone rushes out.

68' GOAL ALBION - Gayle scrambles home from close range after Amos saves Hegazi's header.

76' GOAL ALBION - Gibbs fires a low shot into the far corner after Mears's cross bounces through to him at the back post.

Albion man of the match

Jake Livermore - Kept Albion ticking along.

Position in the table

3rd, with 17 points from 9 games.

Teams

Albion (3-4-1-2): Johnstone; Dawson, Hegazi, Bartley; Phillips (Mears 65), Brunt (c), Livermore, Gibbs; Barnes (Hoolahan 78'); Rodriguez, Gayle (Adarabioyo 88).

Unused subs: Myhill, Barry, Field, Robson-Kanu.

Millwall (4-4-2): Amos; Webster, Cooper, Leonard, Meredith (Elliott 84); J Wallace, Romeo, Williams; Skalak (O'Brien 72); Bradshaw (Gregory 74), Morison (c).

Unused subs: Martin, McLaughlin, Karacan, M Wallace.

Referee: Tim Robinson

Attendance: 23,563 (2,299 away)