Aussies Abroad: McDonald on the mark

2 min read 13 December 2011

Qantas Socceroo Scott McDonald scored his fourth goal in six English Championship matches to guide Middlesbrough to a 1-0 home win over fellow promotion hopefuls Brighton on last weekend.

Qantas Socceroo Scott McDonald scored his fourth goal in six English Championship matches to guide Middlesbrough to a 1-0 home win over fellow promotion hopefuls Brighton on last weekend.

The diminutive striker pounced in the 21st minute following a slip-up by Brighton goalkeeper Casper Ankergren at the Riverside.

Under no pressure, Ankergren spilled a cross and McDonald converted from close range at the second attempt.

The result put Middlesbrough within two points of second-placed West Ham, with the top two teams at season's end being elevated to the lucrative Barclays Premier League.

Also in England's second tier, Adam Federici kept a clean sheet in Reading's 3-0 win over West Ham, Neil Kilkenny came off after 90 minutes in Bristol City's 2-1 loss to Derby County and Mile Jedinak put in a full shift for Crystal Palace in their 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest.

In The Netherlands, Brett Holman set up the opening two goals for league leaders AZ Alkmaar in their 4-0 romp over De Graafschap.

Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar. End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar. In the English top-flight, Tim Cahill's Everton succumbed to a stunning volley from superstar Robin van Persie as Arsenal celebrated its 125th anniversary with a 1-0 win in north London.

Mark Schwarzer's Fulham lost 2-0 at Swansea while uncapped Australian midfielder Chris Herd's Aston Villa enjoyed a 2-1 win at beleaguered Bolton.

In the German first division, former Adelaide United forward Matthew Leckie came off the bench in the 70th minute in Borussia Monchengladbach's 1-0 loss at FC Augsburg.

In the UAE, Mark Bresciano scored twice as Al-Nasr moved up to sixth after a 2-1 defeat of Bani Yas.

The midfielder opened the scoring after 25 minutes and then grabbed the winner eight minutes from the end after Andre Senghor had levelled for the visitors.