Republic of Ireland stalwart Steve Staunton scored Aston Villa's third and decisive goal as Graham Taylor's men stormed into the semi-finals of the Intertoto Cup with a 3-0 win over Switzerland's FC Zurich at Villa Park. Trailing 2-0 from the first-leg, the Birmingham outfit opened the scoring through debutant Michael Boulding after 32 minutes, while Swedish World Cup star Marcus Allback added the second four minutes after the break before Staunton headed the third 13 minutes from time to boost Villa's hopes of a place in the UEFA Cup.
Boulding, a former tennis professional, started the move that led to Villa's first when he earned a free-kick after being brought down on the edge of the area by Alain Nef. Gareth Barry's floated centre picked out Peter Crouch who headed the ball back across goal - and the summer signing from Grimsby Town was on hand to apply the finishing touch. That was how it stayed until half-time, but four minutes after the restart the tie was back on level terms via Allback, who hit a stunning volley following a deft lofted pass from half-time substitute Paul Merson.
And veteran campaigner Staunton put Villa in front for the first time in the tie after 77 minutes when he headed home a Hitzlsperger corner to the joy of the Holte End.
Filed by Shane Murray
