West Brom 2-2 Aston Villa: Jay Rodriguez in late handball drama

Dean Smith could only shake his head and smile. Aston Villa were closing in on another big result that would have moved them into the play-off places, only for West Brom to equalise in scandalous fashion.

In the first minute of stoppage time Matt Phillips crossed and Jay Rodriguez bundled the ball in. The Hawthorns erupted. Except this was no header. It was a slam dunk.

In challenging goalkeeper Orjan Nyland, Rodriguez raised his hands and nudged the ball down, then as he fell his arm struck once more. The ball trickled in.

Villa's appeals were raised instantly and unanimously. In seconds social media christened it Hand of Rod. Oblivious, referee Darren England consulted his assistant on that side. Somehow the officials contrived to award the goal.

Rodriguez even put his hands up after the final whistle, admitting his good fortune. 'It's just how my hands fell, it's luckily gone in, the referee has not seen it,' he said.

It denied Villa a victory they deserved and punished the misses made by Tammy Abraham to make the win certain.

'When you get a reaction from 11 players you know something is amiss,' Smith said. 'The officials haven't done their job. We should have put the game to bed with the chances we had. Everybody here knows it should be three points.'

Before kick-off you could get odds of 14/1 on this game ending goalless, but that was free money for the bookies. Scoring was inevitable.

Heading into the evening these two teams topped the Championship charts for goals this season. West Brom had been involved in 70, Villa 69. Their attacks have been freewheeling and, occasionally, the wheels have fallen off their defences.

So it did not take Nostradamus to predict an absence of clean sheets. And so it transpired, early, with Villa taking the lead in the 12th minute.

Anwar El Ghazi collected a West Brom clearance, cut inside and hit a shot that would have been saved by Sam Johnstone but for a major deflection off Ahmed Hegazi.

It was a carbon copy of Chelsea's goal up the road at Molineux on Wednesday, and whether you give it the Villa winger or West Brom defender depends on your disposition.

Villa had the next chance too, Johnstone making a fine low save to Abraham's strike, but within 60 seconds West Brom had equalised.

Matt Phillips sparked a counter by launching the ball long to Harvey Barnes, who got the better of Alan Hutton and chipped a super pass for Dwight Gayle to run onto. Gayle cushioned a volley into the corner.

The match fizzed along to a bouncing atmosphere, and the chances kept coming. Jack Grealish found Abraham in yards of space but the Villa forward scuffed his finish.

John McGinn hit a pure strike from 30 yards but smacked the post. Into the second half Gayle met a deep cross by Kieran Gibbs but put his header over.

Then, just before the hour, El Ghazi got a goal that was indisputably his. Grealish jinked his way across the final third and rolled the ball the Dutchman just before being clattered by Jake Livermore. El Ghazi took a couple of touches then cut a rocket of a shot into the top corner from 25 yards.

Villa should have been out of sight long before the final whistle but Abraham twice got himself in a horrible mess.

First he missed an easy chance from the edge of the six-yard box when found by Yannick Bolasie, the ball just behind him only minor mitigation. Then he headed wide from El Ghazi's fine cross. He would be made to pay.