Football: Bruce steps up to keep the United show on the road

Manchester United. . . . .2

Sheffield Wednesday. . . .1

SIX minutes into the time added mainly for an injury to the referee, Manchester United's Steve Bruce scored his second goal of the day to put his side back on top of the Premier League. It could be the one that saves United from the agony of another frustrating end to the season.

Twenty minutes from time United were a goal down and bereft of ideas. Then Bryan Robson was brought on and suddenly the hand of experience grasped the urgency of the situation. 'He gave us a sense of purpose,' Alex Ferguson said after a wry, relieved joke that 'we didn't play until the 96th minute'. It was at Easter time last year that United's championship challenge collapsed. The theory this time is that being free of Cup commitments and having their remaining games comfortably spread across the last month of the season, they are better placed. Indeed, after their 3-1 win at Norwich last Monday, Ferguson's biggest problem yesterday at first seemed nothing more troublesome than whether to bring back Mark Hughes and include the old warhorse Robson. The absence of Andrei Kanchelskis on international duty persuaded him to pick Hughes but Robson was kept in reserve until the crunch.

Being without David Hirst and Paul Warhurst, Wednesday inspired no great hope that they would perform as spiritedly as they did, and as they had a week before at Wembley. It was too much to expect Chris Waddle to provide an encore, yet after a moment or two's hesitation he very nearly did. After only 10 minutes, he cruised past the couple of tackles on the halfway line only to let Paul Ince take possession and run the ball almost half the length of the field before being stopped in the goalmouth by the always commanding Chris Woods. Nevertheless, having Waddle and Eric Cantona on the same sun-soaked pitch was to enjoy a double French connection.

Although Wednesday's breakaways were always penetrating and Waddle's passing rapidly improved on his first intervention, Cantona's touch was all silk and showmanship. If United had half a dozen chances in the first half an hour, not one failed to involve Cantona. The unlikely irony, however, was that the comparatively ungainly and often maligned Carlton Palmer almost always frustrated not only the Frenchman but the charges of Hughes and infiltrating forward runs of Brian McClair.

Palmer never concerned himself with trapping opponents offside and the rest of his game was the usual obvious but effective thrusting out of feet and an enthusiasm that takes some beating. More than anyone, Palmer enabled Wednesday to keep United at bay until near the end. Meanwhile the smooth control of John Sheridan was unrivalled.

When the seemingly extendable legs of Palmer and Viv Anderson were avoided, United still had Woods to beat. Ryan Giggs pestered without ever looking menacing. But he set up Lee Sharpe for United's most inviting opening of the first hour. When Sharpe centred, though, Hughes's shot from a couple of yards was blocked by the England goalkeeper and after 63 minutes the deputy referee, who had only just takenover from Mr Peck, who injured a leg, found himself thrust into controversy.

Waddle had begun to maraud in the centre of the Wednesday attack and he was moving through the United penalty area when Ince tackled him from behind. Bravely, Mr Hilditch instantly called for a penalty which Sheridan calmly struck in.

United's Easter seemed about to herald another collapse, especially when Woods again denied Hughes, but in the 85th minute, after Robson had come to revive hope, Denis Irwin's corner dropped beautifully for Bruce to head in. Still, a draw was less than United needed and Bruce again obliged them. Phil King headed Irwin's corner away but Gary Pallister returned it. Nigel Worthington deflected the ball slightly and Bruce headed in a winning goal that combined nicely with Aston Villa's failure to beat Coventry to set up United as the team with the title advantages.

Manchester United: P Schmeichel; P Parker (B Robson, 67 min), D Irwin, S Bruce, L Sharpe, G Pallister, E Cantona, P Ince, B McClair, M Hughes, R Giggs. Subs not used: L Sealey (gk), M Phelan. Manager: A Ferguson.

Sheffield Wednesday: C Woods; R Nilsson, N Worthington, C Palmer, J Sheridan, V Anderson, D Wilson (C Bart-Williams, 58 min), C Waddle, P King, N Jemson (M Bright, 53 min), G Watson. Sub not used: K Pressman (gk), Manager: T Francis.

Referee: M Peck (Kendal) (sub: J Hilditch, Stoke).

Goals: Sheridan (pen, 0-1, 65 min); Bruce (1-1, 86 min); Bruce (2-1, 89 min).

(Photograph omitted)