Boro vs Preston, Riverside - 24th January - K.O. 12.30pm
Given that we've got an early kick off on Saturday, I'm going early with this one, to give us chance to regroup after the excitement of Stoke.
Enid Blyton’s: “Five go Wild at the Riverside”
What a perfectly scrumptious afternoon it promised to be! The sun was peeping out from behind a fluffy sulphurous cloud, casting a golden glow over the bustling fishing village of Middlesbrough-on-Tees.
"Buck up, everyone!" cried Julian, adjusting his red-and-white scarf with a grin. "We mustn't be late for the big match. Preston North End are coming all the way from darkest Lancashire, and they’ll be a tough nut to crack, you mark my words!"
A Jolly Exciting Arrival
The air at the Riverside Stadium was thick with the delicious smell of hot meat pies and the sound of excited chatter. Thousands of positive, upbeat folk were streaming through the turnstiles, their faces bright with anticipation, ready to give a Typical Teesside welcome to one and all, with not a hint of negativity throughout the entire Diasboro diaspora. Anne had packed a marvellous hamper just in case the Famous Five felt peckish, filled with Lowcock’s ginger beer, Newbould’s pork pies and lashings of hot Bovril.
"Look!" shouted Dick, pointing toward the pitch. "There are the Middlesbrough chaps in their smart red jerseys. They look awfully fit and ready for a scrap!" George breathlessly took her seat in the stands beside him, having had to remonstrate quite brusquely with a ruffian from Over the Border, who’d called her, “a bit of a Doyle”. Dick has reassured her that all was well, after he’d conversed with the gadgie in his local twang, enquiring of him, “You’re joking aren’t you?”
The Battle on the Pitch
It was bound to be a most adventurous game. The Middlesbrough "Boro" boys were known for their pluck and determination, but the Preston North End “Lilywhites” were a sturdy lot, famous for their Satanic Mills and butter pies.
The Boro Strategy: Fast, nippy passes and a jolly good dash toward the goal.
The Preston Defence: A wall as solid as the Guildhall and as hard as an overbaked Chorley cake, ready to thwart any Whittaker trickery.
"I do hope it’s a fair game," said Anne primly, though her eyes were dancing. "It would be simply wizard if Boro scored an early goal, wouldn't it? Dick, do you see that wild-eyed chap over there? That’s Tommy, I do hope he leathers the casey into the onion bag again today”
A Thrilling Prediction
As the referee blew his silver whistle to start the fray, the crowd let out a tremendous cheer that could be heard all the way to Roseberry Topping; startling two woolly-back kids merrily swinging on their tarzy. George gripped Timmy’s lead tightly—the big dog gave an excited (Billy)"Woof!", as if he wanted to join in the game himself.
It was going to be a day of headers, tackles, and perhaps a bit of old-fashioned magic from the wingers. Whether it ended in a victory for the home side or a plucky draw, one thing was certain - it was going to be an afternoon of first-class sport and wonderful fun! Hurrah!
Right that’s more than enough whimsy for one day, so here’s the view from over the Pennines from our PNE correspondent, Dave.
“A couple of weeks ago Martin asked me once more to provide some words from a Preston perspective, prior to our lunchtime meeting at the Riverside on Saturday. I readily agreed as at the time we were sitting pretty in the table and had just beaten Bristol City 2-0 at their place, things were looking good and I was really enjoying the season thus far!
Fast forward to this morning, Weds 21st, and I’m now writing these words full of a cold, on the back of an unceremonious dumping out of the FA Cup at home by Wigwam, followed by two successive home defeats in the league at the hands of a very route one Derby County and an at best average Hull side! All topped off by our nut job striker getting sent off for head butting an opponent 96 minutes into last night’s game when we are 3-0 down! Wish I’d said no thanks now! 🤣
Suffice to say I’m not quite as happy as I was a couple of weeks ago and, like a lot of other Northenders, fearing our traditional end of season fade away has begun early this season! However, if you’d have told me at the start of the season after our relegation scare last season we would be 6th in the third week of January I’d have laughed at you, then snapped your hand off! It’s a funny old league this season in that there are so many teams still in contention for the top two spots and the play off spots!
Given the resources at his disposal Paul Heckingbottom has done a remarkable job really to have us where we are in the table at this stage. For the first time in a long while we have got a bit of pace in the squad, shrewd young premier league loans (Armstrong, Dobbin, Devine and Jebbison) coupled with some cheap/free pick ups (Iversen, Valentin, Small and Vucevic) have given us a fresher feel about the squad too! However, the problem with these loans are that they aren’t your players and as was the case with Harrison Armstrong they are always going back to their parent club, sometimes sooner than expected. The recall of 18 year old Armstrong, who was on a season long loan to us, to his parent club Everton due to their injury problems and players missing on AFCON duties is a major loss for us. It’s quite obvious that even as a young lad he’s got a great future in the game and in my opinion will pay for England in the near future. He may come back to complete the season with us, something David Moyes has stated he still wants to happen, but he’s not looked out of place in the Everton side so who knows!
Losing our first-choice keeper, Daniel Iversen, to a groin injury just before the Derby game was another massive for us, his saves have won us quite a few points already this season and he looks to be out for a few weeks yet, if rumours are to be believed. Another big loss for us.
If you look at our goal scoring stats the goals have been spread around a lot with no prolific out and out goalscorer, something again which could cost us once more. Which brings me around to the thorny subject of the man perceived as our main goal threat, Milutin Osmajic! His issues have been well documented and debated over the last couple of seasons, he’s a good strong player with all the attributes needed to be a quality goalscorer, however, it’s clear that he seems unable to control what seems to be his very short fuse! It’s also clear that the opposition players know this and, as was the case on Tuesday, got into his head to the extent he lost it once more and got sent off for his silly reaction! This will be 3 major bans in less than two years for him now and most PNE fans seem to now want him to be shown the door! Given how light we are on strikers and his reputation within the game I’m not too sure someone would be willing to chance it and also I doubt we’d get much in the way of a fee for him which would give us somewhat of a problem in finding a replacement as the current owners appear not to want to splash the cash once again!
At this moment in time during the transfer window, we’ve had 3 players move out Armstrong, Keane and Tordarson and thus far no incomings! Hopefully Armstrong will return but it’s clear that if we are to even remotely maintain our play off ambitions new faces are required, otherwise the inevitable slide down the table will occur.
Coming to Saturday, another dreaded Sky o’clock kick off, we’ll be bringing about 1800 I understand. Given our missing players and current form I think you will be too strong for us on this occasion and will win by 2 or 3, I hope I’m wrong but that’s my gut feel!
On a positive note how good would it be if Martin were to ask me for some words for our clashes next season and we are both in the top flight! Unlikely in our case, but looking at where you’ve got yourselves this season you’ve got to be in with a good shout!🤣
All the best for the rest of the season (Saturday excepted)!
Finally, I’d be interested in your views on Alan Browne, how’s he been for you thus far?”
A massive thank you once again to Dave for helping out with the Preston starter. The games are coming thick and fast at the moment, so any help is always appreciated, especially when his words give a greater insight into the opposition. I’d say that this is another must win game – we can’t afford to drop points at home at this stage of the season, so I’m going for a 2-1 Boro win. Over to you for your predictions.
@Martin. Thank you for your “famous five” starter, hope that is a prediction of how many we will score on Saturday.
Thanks also to Dave for his informative input on how PNE are fairing both on and off the pitch.
I am not greedy and will not be disappointed if we don’t score five but happy if we score enough to beat the Lillywhites.
We certainly don’t want another Stoke first half performance which was akin to the worst of Carrickball, slow play, appalling passing and a sloppy goal conceded.
I have a feeling we may struggle and just take a point, as Heckingbottom is a shrewd coach who will set up to frustrate us as he has done in the past; I hope I am wrong and we win comfortably and without a nervy ending! 😎
Ps. Alan Browne, along with Callum Britain have been the finds of the season and we need to ensure we turn his loan into a permanent deal, as I believe he will hold his own in the PL.
Wonderful, Martin, and laugh out loud funny with your references to Billy Woof, Lowcock's ginger beer, Newbould's pork pies and much more, bringing the world of 1950s middle-class Blyton into hilarious collision with the Boro world that we all knew as kids. Yet another classic leader from the blog that just keeps on delivering. Many thanks for all the enjoyment.
Thanks too to Dave for his excellent briefing on PNE. I wonder if he can illuminate Browne's possible credentials as a midfielder in the Leadbitter mould, who can contribute his fair share of goals. I was going from memory on his scoring record. In fact he got 12 goals in 2018-19, and 7 the season before. Leads best season was in 2014-15 when he got 11 followed by 6 the next year. My point is that the recruitment team and manager, as well our local journos seem not to have twigged that Browne is just as capable as Leads was in playing as a forward thinking midfielder and have placed him in a box as an essentially defensive player.
Any road, a terrific opener all round
Well done, Martin and Famous Five! I think I read them all while I was between 8 to 11 years old. Naturally in Finnish - I borrowed the books from the library that was in the same building as our school. Happy days.
In the Finnish translations the five were called Anne, Paul(a), Dick and Leo. I think the dog was called Tim in here. Where did they leave the dog while at the Riverside?
I have re-read the books again when my own children were young. So the adventutes in the moors are not lost on me.
Anyway, I am sure we will put on a performance and might even score a few against PNE. So I expect a win. Up the Boro!
@Martin - that was a great read thank you although I am sure that the Famous Five should really have tried a Parmo as part of their expedition!
Interesting to hear the views of Dave again although I am not sure I share his negativity about the game. PNE have a good recent record against us and as often said by a certain Mr Gill, late of this parish, the table doesn’t lie although in the topsy turvey nature of the CHampionship who knows!
I am slightly nervous, especially since Boro Becky and her brother will be joining their Dad for what has become a rare Terrible Three outing and I am struggling to recall when we were last together for a victory.
At least one of my cousins won’t be present and usually when he is away, then we score a few goals for him to be frustrated that he wasn’t there.
No prediction for me, just fingers firmly crossed!
UTB
@boro-beckys-dad I was very tempted to include a Parmo. I was hoping to include the specific brand of pies at the Riverside but couldn’t remember which ones they sell.
@martin-bellamy Many thanks Martin for a brilliant opener on the Preston match.
Well done Martin that was an expertly written parody that really captured the genre - plus very funny too - I think there were a few posh kids in Guisborough I recall would've easily fitted into the famous five - though maybe not in Linthorpe from my earlier years 😉
Plus once again many thanks to Dave for a really good insight into Preston and maybe they're like many teams without large squads starting to feel the grind of the Championship. So many thanks for another excellent starter!
I hope Kim Hellberg gets the team up for the game from the start as we can't rely on another second-half revival - though another win to make it 4 in a row is not beyond Boro.
I think we need to know more about that Famous Five and the mystery of the image Martin 😉
@werdermouth I don’t think Chat GPT is really that much of a mystery 😉
Martin
Great stuff really enjoyed that well,done!
Looking forward to the sequel on Saturday .
FIVE GO INTO THE NET !
OFB
Loved that, @martin-bellamy. Beatifully whimsical and most entertaining. Also big thanks to Preston Dave for another great insight into the curent state of Denmark at Deepdale. I would love to see Preston, what I might call a real football club, back in the top flight. While unlikely, it could happen we might both be competing in the Premier League next season. Lets all hang on to that dream, despite that we will be doing our best to put a dent in each other's chances on Saturday.
I suspect the momentum is with Boro though and I can't see past a comfortable victory, with Tommy Conway getting to score again!
Re young Mr Brown. I do not think he has had a bad game for us, despite being used in many different roles. Much as I like the Hackney/Morris combination, when Morris was injured ealier in the season, I felt the Hackney/Brown combination was much more effective... Defintely one of the best signings this season.
Lashings of laughs there Martin. Will it be a famous 5 for Boro ?
I loved your starter, Martin. Both your Famous Five ripping yarn and Dave’s contribution are outstanding. Quite brilliant.
As we know, PNE is always a hard game, and I expect tomorrow’s to be no different. As has been said, Heckingbottom will have them well organised and hard to break down. Dave pointed out that they also have young players with plenty of pace. I’m encouraged that their main keeper is out and that they will be once again missing ‘nut-job’ centre forward, Osmajic. On paper, we should beat them, but I’m a bit anxious. Any win will do, even by a scrappy 1-0, but I do hope Boro can build on their second-half performance at Stoke, pile the pressure on Preston and get us a couple of goals. At least, we should be full of confidence after two good away wins.
Just listened to the presser by Kim Hellbeg. He said that McGree will be back. And another one or two.
But he did not say if they are ready to start. But it is nice to know the bench will be strong.
Up the Boro!
Well done, Martin. I know that Enid Blyton is not well thought-of by some who prefer more highbrow literature but my argument, and it is the same with JK Rowling, is that if you can put something in front of children which engages them and encourages them to read, they can look at more "worthy" stuff in due course. If I didn't read all of the Famous Five series, it will have been the majority of the books. Obviously Blyton also wrote other books including the series of Noddy and Malory Towers books. Prolific is the word for her!
I was miffed one Saturday morning when I went aound to my local branch library and borrowed one from the Famous Five series. I made the trek back home with it, probably all of 200 yards and read the book within a few hours. I went back with the book after lunch with the intention of getting another in the series. However I was told in no uncertain terms that I couldn't exchange a book only taken out that day and I'd have to wait until Monday. Not the way to encourage a 10 year old (I guess) to read.
Thanks for that blast from my Famous Five past. Yes, it was a middle class life rather different from mine in Dormo, with the group rowing a boat over to Kirrin Island and taking with them picnic lunches containing fruit cake, sandwiches, apples and the famous lashings of ginger beer, but the crime-fighting and mystery in their adventures was, no doubt, an escape from the life of a Primary School pupil in Dormanstown in the 1960s. Allowing children to roam free, disappearing from the house in the morning and not being expected back until their evening meal (for which they probably had a different word than me) meeting "mild peril" at regular intervals, would most likely elicit a vist from the various child protection agencies in 2026.
So I enjoyed the Match Preview. In addition it is always good to hear how the Championship seems from the lips (or typing fingers) of a supporter from another team. Ten out of ten to "Preston Dave" for his information. And, though I suspect he will have gathered this from the comments of others, Browne has been a REALLY successful addition to Boro's team. A very solid professional on whom the team can rely, wherever in the team he is asked to play.
It is difficult when these games come so fast upon each other. It might be an issue for the staff and the players but it is, at least, their job. For those of us who have lives, whether working or retired lives quite apart from football, it would be ideal if we had a game on Saturday afternoon and occasionally one on Friday evening or Sunday, and SOME matches midweek (but not every midweek). But if it is Saturday (of course that could be 12.30pm as this next game is, or 3pm or 5.30pm), Tuesday, Saturday, Wednesday, Sunday, Tuesday, Friday evening etc in relentless procession it inteferes with "normal life".
I wonder who Boro will sign from now until the end of January. Some noise about Sarmiento but I am concerned if he has played only minutes since October. As we approach the end of January, that will no doubt mean that he will be some weeks from match fitness and, of course, we are then into March and the Championship (promotion) run-in. Boro could really do with someone who is fully fit and ready to hit the pitch running at full speed from the start. We will see.
Boro to win, 2-1 or 3-1. The latter would be better for my heart. I was nervous watching the Stoke game and, from here, all games are vital.
I have just listened to the presser myself. I have to say that I find KH refreshigly open and genuinely enthusiastic about the game and his squad of players. Very impressive.Just listened to the presser by Kim Hellbeg. He said that McGree will be back. And another one or two.
But he did not say if they are ready to start. But it is nice to know the bench will be strong.
Up the Boro!
Not sure I will have time to put anything on tonight or tomorrow what with the Traitors Final to watch along with a few other things to do ahead of my trip up North in the morning.
i could really do without a 1230 kick off although it does mean I will be home earlier for an evening with friends.
Like FD I do find the different timings somewhat frustrating and 3pm kickoffs appear to be almost a rarity these days - no better, if not worse in the Premier League. I feel sorry for those travelling fans who have to endure 8pm kickoffs in London or elsewhere with long distances to cover.
Anyway, onto Boro, hoping that some of the returning players can at the least make an appearance from the bench, hopefully when we are 3 up and that TC can make it 2 games in a row to find the back of the net.
I suspect PNE will be defensively minded and we will have to work our way through a packed midfield which hopefully we will be able to do.
UTB
Boro Fan TV are reporting that Kieran Scott is at home recovering from emergency surgery last month 🤔. Get well soon Kieran UTB.
Come on BORO.
@boro-beckys-dad - What Boro could do with is an early goal. Two would be even better. Then we could enjoy the rest of the game. I suspect we will come away from the stadium happy tomorrow but maybe a little damp from the rain.
How many supporters' blogs would wish a speedy recovery and good health to their club's Head of Football (or whatever Kieran Scott's official title is)? Still, let's hope a good win tomorrow improves his spirits.
Thank you soooo much for your excellent two part Headliner.
Part story, part the opposition take on the affairs tomorrow. Thank you also to Dave for homes contribution.
Let's hope the "Untypical Boro" start the game tomorrow. It's so tight at the top and especially with the two teams below us having a game in hand.
As werder pointed out in his recent post. The teams that go up automatically, do not get beat.
Great intro Martin. Brought back childhood memories of reading the Famous Five and Secret Seven. As to Saturdays game, not sure what to expect. They have a decent record at the Riverside. It would be good if we could win both halves, which we have yet to do under KH. Good news that Riley McGree may be on the bench. I think that we will start with the 11 that started the second half on Wednesday. Cruz Ibeh probably on bench as he didn't play for the U21's at Fulham last night. Interestingly, the referee is Andy Madley and this is his first game outside of the Premier League this season. Last Saturday he was at Anfield.
Just noticed that one of Preston's centre backs is Odeluga Offiah, nephew of rugby league international Martin 'Chariots' Offiah. Hopefully his nephew is not as big or fast as his uncle. I once umpired Martin when he was playing cricket at the school I worked at in Ipswich, he went to a boarding school nearby run by London Education. He was a big unit then and could hit a long ball and bowl fast.
@mw-in-darwin I think MO is just a natural athlete. I’ve seen him play for Wigan Warriors many times and, boy, can he run.
I can't believe this but a watery sun has poked its head out between the clouds. It's not raining! And the 7mph south easterly wind is a manageable 14mph. A "moderate breeze"! Admittedly this is in my North Yorkshire village but for central Middlesbrough the forecast before, during and after the match is DRY, sunny intervals and 7 to 8C (one hour at 2pm when the perecentage rain is 19%, but otherwise at zero). So, rather more comfortable than had been expected...
Let's hope the game is a good one. And, of course, that it gives us THREE points!
Castledine & Fry start, McGree & Brittain on the bench:
Interesting to see how they line up.