BEHIND every great man is a great woman.

Or in Brad Friedel's case, behind every great goalkeeper is a great woman.

Friedel was the hero for Blackburn Rovers on a bizarre afternoon at Bramall Lane, saving two penalties in the same game for the first time in his professional career to prevent Sheffield United from claiming an unlikely victory.

And through it all, Friedel's muse was right behind him - quite literally - as he formed an impenetrable barrier in the Steel City.

Friedel's wife, Tracy, who is heavily pregnant with the couple's second child, thinks nothing of travelling on her own to away matches in an unstinting show of support for her husband.

But, unlike the England WAGS at the World Cup, the presence of Mrs Friedel clearly brought the best out in her man here.

Sat behind the goal with the rest of Rovers' travelling army, Friedel's other half was treated to a goalkeeping masterclass by Mark Hughes' Mr Dependable'.

Aside from his penalty heroics, Friedel made a string of other top saves to keep his side in the hunt for only their second point of the season.

But, as he soaked up the acclaim at the final whistle, there was only one person Friedel made a beeline for - Tracy, his wife and number one supporter.

"She sits with the fans at away games - even though she is heavily pregnant with our second child," explained Friedel.

"We have a box at Ewood but for away games, she just takes a ticket with the away fans and she loves it - although not if I'm abused!

"She just enjoys a day out and today she drove over on her own to see the game."

Rovers would have slipped to their third defeat in four games had it not been for Friedel's reflexes.

Twice in the last 12 minutes, the referee, Mike Dean, took leave of his senses and awarded United two penalties.

Both decisions were dubious, to say the least, but Friedel ensured justice was done by saving both, the first from David Unsworth, the second from Rob Hulse.

It's not the first time the big American has shown his prowess in a shootout situation.

In fact, Friedel has a remarkable record when it comes to saving spot-kicks.

At the 2002 World Cup, the former United States international saved two penalties in open play, against Poland and South Korea, to equal a record in the finals.

And with Rovers, his success rate is even more impressive.

In seven seasons with the club, Friedel has saved eight of the 26 penalties he has faced in open play - a phenomenal statistic when you consider the odds are heavily stacked in the taker's favour.

Three of those have come this season - prior to Saturday's efforts, he also saved from Kanu at Portsmouth on the opening day.

So what's the secret behind his astonishing success?

"I approach them differently each time and it just depends on who's taking them," said the imposing American.

"Going up against someone like Unsworth, I've played against him for many years and I know what he's capable of. I just tried to detect what he would do in his run.

"Hulse was a new thing, I'd never faced him before, so I tried to read him the best way I could.

"But I do my homework. Before each game, I go through who takes the penalties with the scouting team on ProZone.

"I try my best not to guess because that way, you are probably lowering the odds to less than 50-50.

"So you try to read them to increase your chances. The bigger the game, the easier it is to save the penalty because the onus is all on the penalty taker.

"All the nerves are with the striker because he is supposed to score."

Friedel didn't just get Rovers off the hook here, he also saved the blushes of the officials, too.

Mike Dean plumbed new depths of ineptitude during a manic last 20 minutes that saw him award THREE penalties, all of which should never have been given.

Rovers were the first to benefit from his generosity, Dean pointing to the spot in the 70th minute when Benni McCarthy keeled over following the slightest of nudges in the back from Unsworth.

It was a soft decision that would have left Mark Hughes foaming at the mouth had it been given against his side.

Instead, Rovers accepted the gift with open arms, only for Lucas Neill to then be denied by United keeper Paddy Kenny. It was the start of a theme.

Five minutes later, Mr Dean then pointed to the spot at the opposite end, this time against Zurab Khizanishvili, who was penalised for tugging Rob Hulse's shirt.

In fairness, the Georgian international, who was otherwise outstanding, had just been warned for committing a similar offence, which is now the subject of a new directive.

Ludicrous!

Thankfully for Rovers, Friedel guessed right and clawed away Unsworth's spot-kick. But still there was more penalty drama to come in a game that neither side seemed destined to win.

Four minutes from time, Neill went to chest a routine ball back to Friedel, something he does countless times during the course of a season.

However, to the Aussie's astonishment, Dean then pointed to the spot again, this time on the advice of his assistant, who couldn't possibly have seen the incident clearly as Neill had his back to him at the point of contact.

Not surprisingly, Hughes went ballistic in his technical area at the sense of injustice, but United's hopes of a first Premiership win of the season were then dashed once again by Rovers' man of steel, Friedel diving brilliantly to his left to keep out Hulse's spot-kick.

Friedel's performance apart - he also made another match-winning save from Hulse late on - there was little to excite Rovers' travelling army.

Mark Hughes' side have yet to gel as they look to emulate last season's sixth-placed finish, which is a cause for concern with Thursday's UEFA Cup tie with Salzburg looming large on the horizon.

Andre Ooijer again looked jittery at the back, there was a lack of cohesion in midfield, and Rovers have yet to work out how to get the best from McCarthy, who was eventually replaced by Shabina Nonda.

For now at least, Hughes is faced with more questions than answers.