By James Pearson Last updated: 10th May 2008
Johnson: Staying ground
Bristol City boss Gary Johnson knows his side are not at Wembley yet despite their first leg success over Crystal Palace on Saturday.
The Robins have the advantage going into the return leg at Ashton Gate thanks to David Noble's sensational stunner deep into injury time in South London.
Earlier in the game Ben Watson's penalty looked to have salvaged a draw for The Eagles after cancelling out Louis Carey's opener for the visitors.
Johnson acknowledges his side have the upper hand going into the return leg, although he knows Palace will be desperate to get that goal back in Bristol.
"If you're a goal up of course it swings in your favour, but as a professional manager you know that only one up is still a big thing to keep," Johnson told Sky Sports.
"Crystal Palace will come to Ashton Gate and try to get that one back as soon as they can so the tie still is very much there for both teams at the moment.
"We can only do what we've done in the away leg and come away 2-1 winners. We've now got to put in a good home performance as well."
Johnson has conceded that even if Noble had not won the game late on, he would still have been proud of his side's performance.
"I thought (the performance) was fantastic," he continued. "I thought it was a very competitive game. I thought our lads stood up to the battle very, very well.
"The referee had a fantastic game so I'm willing to trust his judgement. If it was a penalty it was a penalty.
"I felt we were playing well enough. I would have come in and been proud of the lads at 1-1. It was a fantastic strike to give us the lead."
| Time | Fixture |
|---|---|
| Friday 7th August | |
| The Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| 20:00 | Middlesbrough vs Sheff Utd |
| Saturday 8th August | |
| The Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| 15:00 | Cardiff vs Scunthorpe |
| 15:00 | Crystal Palace vs Plymouth |
| 15:00 | Derby vs Peterborough |
| 15:00 | Leicester vs Swansea |
| 15:00 | Preston vs Bristol City |
| 15:00 | QPR vs Blackpool |
| 15:00 | Reading vs Nottm Forest |
| 15:00 | Sheff Wed vs Barnsley |
| 15:00 | Watford vs Doncaster |
| 17:30 | West Brom vs Newcastle |
| Sunday 9th August | |
| The Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| 12:45 | Coventry vs Ipswich |
| Saturday 15th August | |
| The Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| 15:00 | Barnsley vs Coventry |
| 15:00 | Blackpool vs Cardiff |
| 15:00 | Bristol City vs Crystal Palace |
| 15:00 | Doncaster vs Preston |
| 15:00 | Ipswich vs Leicester |
| 15:00 | Nottm Forest vs West Brom |
| 15:00 | Peterborough vs Sheff Wed |
| 15:00 | Plymouth vs QPR |
| Time | Result |
|---|---|
| Monday 25th May | |
| Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| Burnley 1 - 0 Sheff Utd | |
| Tuesday 12th May | |
| Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| Reading 0 - 2 Burnley | |
| Monday 11th May | |
| Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| Sheff Utd 1 - 0 Preston | |
| Saturday 9th May | |
| Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| Burnley 1 - 0 Reading | |
| Friday 8th May | |
| Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| Preston 1 - 1 Sheff Utd | |
| Sunday 3rd May | |
| The Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| Reading 1 - 2 Birmingham | |
| Crystal Palace 0 - 0 Sheff Utd | |
| Sheff Wed 1 - 0 Cardiff | |
| Watford 3 - 1 Derby | |
| Plymouth 1 - 2 Barnsley | |
| Nottm Forest 3 - 1 Southampton | |
| Wolverhampton 1 - 0 Doncaster | |
| Charlton 4 - 2 Norwich | |
| Preston 2 - 1 QPR | |
| Swansea 0 - 1 Blackpool | |
| Burnley 4 - 0 Bristol City | |
| Ipswich 2 - 1 Coventry | |
| Monday 27th April | |
| The Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| Norwich 0 - 2 Reading | |
| Saturday 25th April | |
| The Coca-Cola Football League Championship | |
| Birmingham 1 - 2 Preston | |
| Bristol City 1 - 1 Sheff Wed | |
| Pos | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barnsley | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Blackpool | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Bristol City | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Cardiff City | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Coventry City | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Crystal Palace | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Derby County | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Doncaster Rovers | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | Ipswich Town | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | Leicester City | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Middlesbrough | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | Newcastle United | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | Nottingham Forest | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | Peterborough United | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | Plymouth Argyle | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | Preston North End | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | Queens Park Rangers | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | Reading | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | Scunthorpe United | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | Sheffield United | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | Sheffield Wednesday | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | Swansea City | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | Watford | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | West Bromwich Albion | 0 | 0 |
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