Clint Dempsey notches hat trick in wild Fulham win

Nobody could have seen this wild second half coming.  The first half at Craven Cottage saw a lackluster effort from the home side as a late first half goal from Danny Guthrie sent Newcastle to a 1-0 lead at the break.

The second half was not to be so quiet as Clint Dempsey and Fulham emerged from halftime with a renewed vigor.  Newcastle were overwhelmed as Fulham steamed forward at every chance.  When the onslaught was over Fulham had scored five times and Clint Dempsey had a hat trick.  Fulham ran out 5-2 winners.

Clint Dempsey scored in the 59th, 65th and 89th for his second hat trick in less than a month.  He is in rare form and doing what no American has ever done overseas.  It was the first ever American hat trick in an EPL match.  His previous hat trick came in an FA Cup game.

Elsewhere in EPL play, Chelsea slumped again as they limped to a scoreless draw at Norwich.  Another pitiful result that saw Fernando Torres flame out once again.  Aston Villa gained a valuable three points as they won a wild 3-2 match over Wolves.

The relegation race got a bit clearer as well.  With wins from QPR, West Brom it looks like four teams are firmly entrenched at the bottom.  Three will go down.  Blackburn on 19, Wolves 18, Bolton 16 and Wigan 15 are the danger sides.

The wonderfully entertaining Saturday games are hopefully just the beginning to a great EPL weekend.  Huge matches are on tap tomorrow as third place Tottenham visit leaders Manchester City and second place Manchester United face off against rivals Arsenal.