@stircrazy - I think Conway had a shot that was blocked so maybe that is why, if Targett scored off the rebound
2-2 now! What a game!
2-2 now! What a game!
The second equaliser scored by Sontje Hansen in the second minute of SEVEN minutes of injury time!
5 minutes from the end and I’m thinking is it 1 point gained or 2 points lost. And then from a corner Boro concede a soft goal and it’s definitely 3 points lost . This was a game Boro should have won. And then as I’m writing this Boro sneak an equaliser.
On balance a draw is not a disaster but I still feel disappointed.
Final comment, Lenihan timed his jump poorly for the headed goal which made me think a pity Fry didn’t play. He’s our best at headed clearances.
Philip of Huddersfield 👍🤔
2-2 at FT is a decent result, coming from behind twice against a PNE team playing with confidence.
And STILL top of the league....
Well done, lads (and the manager)!
Great game
We could have as easily lost this as we might have done. Still unbeaten. Good stuff. So good to see us battling to the very end. We can only get better as the newcomers settle in.
CoB
Well that was an exciting second half and while not Boro at their best they would not be beaten and never stopped until the final whistle - plus good substitutions at the right time by Edwards to give Boro a good point in the end.
What it does highlight though is that Edwards now has a lot of options and finding the right blend - particularly in attack - is going to take some working out. Having said that, Strelec looks a good strong forward and Nypan has much more to his game both attacking and defensively to easily be ahead of Whittaker.
Plus having Hansen and Sene to add their pace and energy means Boro have plenty of threat to add to the mix.
Finally a word for Lenihan who performed excellently for his first start in 2 years - plus a mention for Sol Brynn who has great handling when needed. Hackney also probably not at his best today but overall this team has much more to it than in recent seasons!
Pluses. * A point away from home against a team that beat Ipswich and Leicester.
*Coming back from a goal down, twice to snatch the draw.
* Edwards making the early subs.
Negatives. * I think the Boro forwards may struggle at times against the more physical teams.
* The referee let a lot of the pulls and raised arms against Boro go. Only 6/10 for him.
I do not think one can complain with 4 wins and a draw. Friday will be a real test of where are and what we may be able to achieve.
Disappointed that we didn’t win but pleased with our second half performance and that we battled back from being behind twice to earn a well deserved point; if you can’t win then don’t lose.
Another question about the team ticked of. CoB 😎
What it does highlight though is that Edwards now has a lot of options and finding the right blend - particularly in attack - is going to take some working out. Having said that, Strelec looks a good strong forward and Nypan has much more to his game both attacking and defensively to easily be ahead of Whittaker.
Nine goals notched so far this season by EIGHT different scorers (Fry, HH, Jones, Burgzorg, Azaz [no longer with the club, of course], Conway [2], Targett & Hansen). Let's hope it won't be too long before Strelec adds his name to that honours board.
I’d like to apologise for overseeing the end of our 100% success rate. In the end, I’ll settle for the draw.
What a contrast in halves that game was though - great entertainment for the neutral, but nerve wracking for both sets of supporters.
Shame we couldn't win, but a point away is not to be sniffed at, we would have lost that game last season
Your team don’t play well in the first half and are losing 0-1.
Second half they equalise - great, now they are on top and can win this game.
Then disaster as they go behind again 1-2.
Then very late in the game they equalise again . So, we are now happy again.
We now look forward to the next game.
As the full time whistle goes in the next half a hour many supporters up and down the country may well have the same experiences as above.
Philip of Huddersfield 👍😁
Echo player ratings:
Nypan MotM -
7 Nypan (for Whittaker, 67): A game-changer from the bench, as he was against Sheffield United. Hard for Edwards to leave him out against West Ham.
West Ham? 
MAN OF THE MATCH: Nypan was only on the pitch for a quarter of the game but his close control led to the first equaliser. Again excellent from the bench.
And the Gazette's:
Last, but not least, the Hartlepool Mail's:
RE speaking about Dael Fry's injury:
https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/sport/25464764.dael-fry-middlesbrough-injury-update-preston-draw/
Just seen the results. What a topsy turvy league it is.
WBA beaten at home by Derby. Now that was a surprise.
@pedro And we are still top of the league. Only Soton vs. Portsmouth derby to be played on Sunday. And they cannot catch us up.
It will be an interesting match against West Brom on Friday. Up the Boro!
Echo player ratings:
Nypan MotM -
7 Nypan (for Whittaker, 67): A game-changer from the bench, as he was against Sheffield United. Hard for Edwards to leave him out against West Ham.
West Ham?
MAN OF THE MATCH: Nypan was only on the pitch for a quarter of the game but his close control led to the first equaliser. Again excellent from the bench.
And the Gazette's:
Last, but not least, the Hartlepool Mail's:
Interesting that all three sets of ratings report that Callum Brittain had a goal disallowed for offside, so Boro could have won...
@stircrazy He definitely looked offside, so I don’t think we can complain about that one.
Not at our best today but I read prior to the game that it will be interesting to see how we react when we go a goal down, well we answered that twice today.
Not one for criticising players but what is going on with Whittaker, where is the Plymouth player as we certainly aren't seeing him, he looks like he is pulling a caravan, clean through on one occasion today and so slow. He must be doing good things in training as RE keeps persevering with him has Carrick did before him, but he is a no from me at the moment, and certainly Hansen was an immediate improvement when he took Whittakers place.
As others have said a game we probably would have lost last season. It is good to see the wing backs getting forward and contributing in the opposition box. Brittain took his disallowed goal really well. Also thought that the ref missed a number of quite blatant fouls by PNE. Just listened to Rob Edwards' post match interview in which he mentioned the crowd reaction to Morgan Whittaker's substitution. I didn't hear anything on the coverage. Did anyone hear anything from the Boro fans? Also what has happened to Grant Leadbetter. He is listed on the club website as still being on the staff yet on the picture of RE getting his manager of the month award which included a lot of people I couldn't see him and he is not visible in the technical area.
Regarding hearing the crowd reaction to Whittaker's substitution, I didn't hear anything on the TV coverage. Mind you, I hardly heard anything from the crowd during the whole match.
As others have said, what a game of two halves!
In the pub beforehand, Mike , my PNE mate, told me their side would get in our faces! That made a significant impact in their wins over Leicester and Ipswich. And how right he was! They never gave us a second to settle.
Boro weren’t at the races first half. We played so many aimless long balls and misplaced so many passes. We deserved to go in a goal down at the break - and what a fine goal it was, even if our defending of it was weak. It’s notable that Kaly Sène was off the field at the time (receiving treatment? ) and PNE’s move started where he would have been positioned. He had been lying in a heap in the Preston penalty area a few moments earlier, until the ref stopped the game. No trainer came on, but the ref sent him to the touchline. Was it blood? I didn’t see him change his shirt or receive bandages. Were we a trifle unlucky?
Strelec came on for Kaly at the start of the second half and made an instant impact, running at the defence and generally putting defenders under pressure. He provided a valuable foil for Conway. He looks a very good player. Whittaker had had a very poor first half, being knocked off the ball far too easily and offering nothing. When Strelec came on, this appeared to free Whittaker up somewhat and he started to play some nice through balls to the new striker. So he was ironically having his best spell when he was withdrawn, unfortunately to the ironic farewell cheers of some Boro fans.
The second half, in contrast with the first, was magnificently breathless, both sides going at it hammer and tongs. Boro came to life and created several moments of mayhem in the PNE box, before Matt Targett finally smashed home. Phew! Now, Boro, let’s go on and win this!
No such luck. When PNE scored late, I feared we had once again shot ourselves in the foot with yet another very late concession at this, our bogeyest of bogey grounds. Yet Boro came again. Heads didn’t drop. Yet more chaotic ping-pong in the PNE box until Browne, (or was it Hansen?) nodded the ball over the line, despite defenders’ best efforts to claw it out. The ref’s watch clearly indicated it was over the line!
And finally, 7 minutes of added time were up. Breathe again! Boro got a point from a very challenging game when all seemed lost. Preston were extremely competitive. But one thing this Boro side have in spades is grit. To his enormous credit Edwards has instilled a spirit of resilience and fight. Make no mistake about it: Boro would have lost this game last season.
One final point. Edwards is very good at substitutions. Yet again, the players introduced as replacements all had a real impact at crucial times of the game: Strelec at half-time after an ineffective performance from Sène; Nypen introduced just as Whittaker was beginning to improve; and the last one, Hansen. As soon as PNE scored their second, RE rushed into his technical area and urgently called Hansen back from his warm-up on the touchline; the Dutchman was on the field within one minute. Edwards doesn’t let the grass grow - he makes very effective changes as soon as he perceives the need. The contrast with Carrick is staggering. And what’s more, Boro now have a bench with a number of quality players who can all make a difference.
13 points from five games. Top of the league. I’ll take that!
Peter and MW
Sorry lads, I was still writing my post as you posted yours.
Yes, there was significant cheering from our end when Whittaker was withdrawn, though ironically, as I said, this was just as he was improving.
Our 5600 fans were very loud at the start of the game, but we were quietened by PNE’s goal and Boro’s generally listless play. Once we equalised through Targett, we were very raucous indeed, of course (at least until the bloody 88th minute!). The players and manager were given a rapturous reception at the end, which I must say was fully deserved.
@clive-hurren for me Whittaker is clearly lacking in confidence but yet appears to have the full confidence of the coaching team, present and past.
He does appear to be a current weak link, in a side who each individual you can score highly in nearly every game this season to date.
Maybe he needs some time out of the starting line up, introduced later into the game, when space becomes more available, at the moment he looks a little bit lost and his dejection is starting to be seen on the pitch.
Was he a big fish in a small pond at Plymouth ? Time will tell, I have always rated him and hopefully he can turn this around but genuinely I cannot recall one game in a Boro shirt where we have seen the best version of him.
@clive-hurren. “The ref’s watch clearly indicated it was over the line!”
Sorry Clive it didn’t as the goal line technology wasn’t working at Preston as disclosed by Paul Heckingbottom who is asking to see a photograph to prove the ball was over the line!
Watching on tv it looked to me that it was Browne that forced it in with his head. 😎
The goal line technoly was not working at Preston. So it was switched off for the whole of the match. So it was the linesman who gave the goal to us. And having seen several replays, it was a goal. But still I do not know who scored the goal. I cannot say if Browne did touch the ball in the end..... No such luck. When PNE scored late, I feared we had once again shot ourselves in the foot with yet another very late concession at this, our bogeyest of bogey grounds. Yet Boro came again. Heads didn’t drop. Yet more chaotic ping-pong in the PNE box until Browne, (or was it Hansen?) nodded the ball over the line, despite defenders’ best efforts to claw it out. The ref’s watch clearly indicated it was over the line! ...
13 points from five games. Top of the league. I’ll take that!
On Sunday morning, the draw feels good at the boogiest ground of all (as you said). And especially as we are still top of the league. Up the Boro!