Steve Harper made two good saves to deny Joey Barton and Bernardo Corradi before referee Graham Poll controversially ruled out a close-range Georgios Samaras header, ruling Corradi had fouled Stephen Carr in the tussle to reach Barton's corner. But he surprisingly got the backing of City manager Stuart Pearce.
Poll has been under fire from all sides this week following his handling of the Chelsea game last week. But, while his initial reaction said the goal should have stood, Pearce opted not to do a Jose Mourinho and blame the referee for everything from global warming to the sinking of the Titanic.
Pearce: "It was a disappointing decision but the referee has given it and I support him in that. Overall, I thought Graham did well. He has been under a bit of a cloud this week. But, to be fair to him, he is not a shrinking violet.
"He makes decisions and if you ask a question of him he will come over and give you an honest answer, which you have to admire him for."