Scotland star inflicts woe on former Rangers boss as derby day strike boosts promotion dream

Scotland striker George Hirst was the derby day hero as his 10th goal of the season fired Ipswich Town into the EFL Championship automatic promotion spots following a 2-0 win over rivals Norwich City on Saturday afternoon.

Managed by former Rangers manager Philippe Clement, the Canaries had entered the East Anglian derby in good form, losing just one of their last eight league games, but fell behind early at Carrow Road when Jaden Philogene put Ipswich into the lead after just 11 minutes.

A period of pressure would ensue from the home side, but they could not find a desired equaliser, and Hirst made them pay in first-half stoppage time. Twice denied by Norwich stopper Vladan Kovacevic earlier in the half, Hirst finally got the better of his opposite number, firing expertly into the bottom corner of the net after the hosts had failed to deal with a long throw into the box.

Former Rangers boss Philippe Clement had a derby day to forget as his Norwich City side fell to defeat against Ipswich Town. | Getty Images

Aiming to make an immediate return to the English top flight, the win puts Kieran McKenna’s side in the driving seat for promotion from the second-tier as they leapfrog Middlesbrough into second place in the EFL Championship. While the Teessiders can return to second spot with a win against Portsmouth, the Tractor Boys have two games in hand on their promotion rivals heading into the final few weeks of the season.

Meanwhile, international teammate Ryan Christie also had an afternoon to remember as he skippered AFC Bournemouth to a shock 2-1 win over top-of-the-table Arsenal in the English Premier League. Handed the captain’s armband at the Emirates, the visitors took the lead through French striker Eli Junior Kroupi after just 17 minutes, but were pegged back when Christie was adjudged to have handled the ball when trying to block a shot. Viktor Gyokeres made no mistake from the penalty spot to level the score just ten minutes before the break.

However, the Cherries struck back to take a shock win against the league leaders via a 74th-minute Alex Scott strike, who cleverly ran on to Evanilson's flick to fire a shot beyond David Raya to stun home support. A major blow to the Gunners’ title ambitions. The win lifts European-chasing Bournemouth to ninth in the table. Despite the defeat, Arsenal hold a nine-point lead over Manchester City at the top of the table, with Pep Guardiola's team having two games in hand on their title rivals.

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