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Hughes salutes courageous Benni
05/03/2007 08:02 - (SA)
Bolton - Blackburn manager Mark Hughes praised Benni McCarthy's courage after the South African striker's penalty double clinched a 2-1 win at Bolton.
McCarthy had missed from the spot against Bolton earlier this season, but he was still brave enough to step up when Blackburn were given two penalties at the Reebok Stadium on Sunday.
The former Porto striker won his duel with Bolton goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen to convert both second-half spot-kicks and take his goal tally for the season to 18.
Nicolas Anelka got one back for the hosts late on but Blackburn held on to extend their unbeaten run to five matches.
Hughes admitted he admired McCarthy's character and said: "I would never take penalties. You have got to have that belief and it is difficult to do it in a game where emotions are running high and the adrenalin is flowing.
"Benni grabbed the ball and he wasn't going to allow anyone else to take them. You need mental strength, courage and belief in your own ability to do that."
Blackburn are quietly enjoying another successful season under Hughes. They knocked Arsenal out of the FA Cup on Wednesday to set up a quarter-final against Manchester City next weekend and victory over Bolton increases their chances of landing a Uefa Cup spot.
But Hughes believes Rovers are not getting the plaudits their performances deserve.
"We certainly don't get enough credit for the way in which we go about our business," he said.
"I have got creative players in my team who want to be on the ball and show what they can do.
"At times we do get painted in a certain way which is a little bit frustrating. We can do the hard stuff but there is a lot more than getting stuck in. You don't get into Europe by kicking people."
McCarthy broke the deadlock in the 58th minute after David Bentley was brought down by Gary Speed. He added a second ten minutes later after Abdoulaye Faye sent him crashing with a rash lunge.
Anelka reduced the deficit in the 87th minute and Bolton thought they had rescued a point when Faye headed home, but his effort was ruled out for offside.
Bolton have lost their last three matches and are in danger of slipping out of the race for a Champions League place.
They remain five points behind fourth-placed Arsenal and boss Sam Allardyce admitted his team had only themselves to blame.
He said: "It was a tale of two penalties we didn't need to give away. The game didn't have much going for it until those two incidents and we tried to get back into it but you can't give yourselves that much to do.
"It is our own fault for giving two ridiculous penalties away."
- AFP
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