In a big match for the sack race, Le Roy’s most important players stood up for him when it counted. First the talismanic Muniain opened the scoring with an emphatic angled shot from just inside the box, and then the titanic Barnes got in on the action after the break. Nilwall were not dreadful here by any means but they were shown up for sharpness in all areas of the pitch and they folded to a late flurry of goals. Muniain wrapped up his hat-trick with two in quick succession, the latter a penalty, before Shaqiri put a bow on a famous win with a sensational strike. Pekerman remains in place for now, but a loss this startling at home will not buy him much patience.

By Rear Colonel Natalie Poppingcandy