I too have been taking a sabbatical from Football enforced by my wife and medical staff who were determined to get my blood pressure down to something approaching normality.
Nearly there but still a long way to go and surgery next month.
Ive really missed reading the blog and being part of the club !
My thanks for all those good wishes and thoughts go out to those who are similarly impacted including Jarkkos brother.
john Foster the radio announcer reads our vlog and contacted me last night and asked if I would put a post on the blog for him which I was pleased to do. Have a read !
I knew Bernard Gent a wonderful guy who did not personify the description of a sporting character but had a golden voice when he was the announcer at Ayresome Park.
He tried to set up a junior football team and his son and mine played together in a few training games at Stewart Park but it petered out…….
Thanks John
OFB
Welcome back, OFB. Great to hear from you. Hope you’re feeling much better and getting stronger all the time.
Having you back on here is like getting McGree and Alfie Jones back on the pitch. Like them, you’ve been sorely missed.
Thanks Clive
I’m on planned list in 4 - 6 weeks for more heart surgery so hopeful !
mamy thanks
OFB
@pedro
Thanks for that. Had to change my VPN to Manchester, but it looked to me as if there was quite a bit of action in the Lincoln box with several very close attempts on goal.
@mw-in-darwin I like to see an extended version of those stats showing how many saves each keeper had to make. A leaky defence presumably means that a gk has to attempt more saves than an effective back line, so it’s not all in the hands of the keeper as to how many saves he makes.
Good point!
What I meant was that my reading of those highlights was that Boro had quite a few close attempts on goal.
Looking at Saturday's line up it was the first time in a few seasons that there wasn't an Academy graduate in the starting line up, and only three on the bench. In fact there was an absence of Northern born players as well. Morgan Whittaker is the most Northern of the starting 11 being born in Derby. I will do a bit more research to see the last time we took to the field with no academy graduates. Ashley Philips will increase the northerness as he was born in Manchester.
Just catching up with all the post-match comments as I tend to take Sunday's off after game. I thought the first half was a typical first day back performance but thankfully Boro got their rhythm in the second half as the upped the tempo - though maybe all that pressing in the first 45 by Lincoln eventually took its toll.
I think going forward we will have to hope Arfsten gets up to speed at left-back as what we saw with Borges was his limitations in passing and bringing the ball out of defence - we shouldn't forget that Borges was previously rehabilitated into the team when he became a left-sided central defender after suffering at left-back.
It was also evident that that crucial pivot role in midfield was missing both Morris and Hackney - who were both adept at keeping calm when under pressure and making those passes to break the lines. I'm sure Berhalter will settle in once he's got used to the pace of the Championship and knows how much time he has.
Whittaker is still proving to be that enigmatic player who is either unplayable or unable to keep the ball - though his decision not to track Reach for his goal questions his application and for me he is still best as an impact sub. Whether West Ham are interested enough to make an offer Boro would consider is another matter - though rumours that Boro are interested in left-winger Mikey Moore (another Spurs player) who was on loan a Rangers last season may mean raising funds. Then again, I would expect Conway to play that role once he's fit again.
I'd agree that Vitek didn't really impose himself in face of Lincoln pressure but it was his debut and he still needs to gain an understanding with his defenders and he probably just played it safe. Though he got the biggest cheer before the game as he ran towards the goal after changing ends and appeared to leap and touch the crossbar around his chest area. He will be a presence.
All in all a good first game with many real plus points with Lankshear showing the difference of having a goal scorer up top and the return of McGree who is a real quality player. Also was impressed by Peart-Harris when he came on who also looked to have quality. It will be interesting to see who gets the nod in central defence with Ashley Phillips arriving and Jones fit again - to add to Ayling, Malanda and Edmunsen.
@original-fat-bob. Good to hear from you OFB and best wishes for your upcoming surgery which will hopefully see you returned to the first team.
Thank you for posting an interesting article and for reviving memories of the unmistakable voice of Ayresome Park, Bernard Gent, who was a joy to listen to.
Am I mistaken but did he leave us and go to Liverpool? 😎
Good to have you back,Bob, and best wishes for your forthcoming op.
I have a-fib and when doctors advised me to avoid activities that might get me excited my stock reply was that I was a Boro supporter, so it wasn't really a problem.
In fact, my wife observes that my face goes red whenever I watch the lads.
This is accompanied by my daughter's constant refrain of "Dad, they can't hear you", as I yell at my laptop.
So do take care
Thanks Len
Just got to get on with it haven’t we ? (and keep the blood pressure down !]
I was so disappointed after the playoffs and the way the Boro collapsed toward the end of the season when they could have gone up automatically !
Many thanks to all and will forward comments to John Foster who is a great guy and whisper it ….before he was the announcer at Boro Riverside he did the same thing for the Roker Jokers !
OFB
Just announcer for the Boro I believe but was also northern echo journo for sport and motoring
Nice Guy
OFB
Managed to find this tribute to Bernard when he passed away in 2022.
https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/sport/football/tributes-paid-bernard-gent-middlesbroughs-24454701
The article brings back happy memories of standing on the Holgate End.
I had forgotten his introduction of “Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, welcolme to Ayresome Park” but will never forget the unsurpassed, to my mind, The Power Game. I also remember The Hustle, I think there was a limited number of records available for Bernard to play.
I, like Bernard, was a regular from the 66/67 season.😎
Ps the article will open in “reading mode” on iPads
Adam Reach spent six seasons as a pro with Boro, playing 78 times before a £5m move to Sheffield United. He went on to appear for West Brom, but has a decent record against his former side. He scored home and away for the Owls against Boro in 2018/19, and bagged again in 19/20 at the Riverside.@philip-of-huddersfioed
i always liked Coburn but was decidedly put off the player by his overexuberant celebrations when he scored against his home club when he returned last season.
As an air of professionalism look at the way an ex player celebrated his goal against us yesterday for Lincoln. Adam Reach, quiet calm and mindful of the chance Boro and their fans game him in the professional game
OFB
Still, having served his time as an apprentice and made his name with Boro, he says he would never celebrate a goal against them.
“I didn’t really have time to think about it. It happened really fast. For me, listen, different players have different ways of celebrating against former clubs. I left Middlesbrough as a 23-year-old lad with only the fondest of memories, so for me I would never celebrate.
“I think it’s nice to enjoy it with your teammates and the fans, but I would never go overboard with that. Unfortunately, it’s come in a defeat. When you score, you always want that to be in a win, but I think I’ll reflect on that and it’s a lovely memory for me.”
I still have a soft spot for Adam. I was visiting Teesside at the time when he made his debut for Boro. I cannot believe it was such a long time ago. Reach is now 33 years old.
@OFB Great to hear from you. I trust you will be OK soon and ready to be subbed to see matches at Riverside. Take care and take it easy. At least two wins are better for your heath than defeats!
Up the Boro!
I liked Adam Reach. Lovely lad, very talented and I always felt he could do a good job for us, I was sorry to see him leave.
I remember being quite upset and making representations here on his behalf after one game.
I think it was at Wigan. He missed a sitter and got pelters off a lot of Boro fans for costing us 3 points.
Those were the days when, under Karanka, we created so few chances that missing any one of them became a criminal offence, not least in the manger's eyes.
His aim was to eliminate mistakes, a 'philosophy' that explicitly discouraged players from taking risks and putting themselves in the firing line.
I recall the opening fixture of the 2015/16 season, a game in which 18yo Dael Fry made his debut at Preston. Grant Leadbitter made a brilliant run, taking the ball from deep inside his own half into the Preston penalty area. After a give and go he found himself in front of goal but scuffed his shot wide.
The game finished 0-0 and Grant got some terrible abuse for missing a golden chance that he had created himself. The manager didn't defend him.
Thereafter Leads was careful not to make the same mistake by putting himself into those kind of positions. And that is how a player who was a midfield goalscoring machine did not really contributed at all over the 3 subsequent seasons.
Here are Leads goal figures
2014-15 12
2015-16 4
2016-17 2
2017-18 3
Of those 9 goals scored in the next 3 seasons, 8 of them were penalties. In other words he stopped putting himself in scoring positions and kept himself clear of criticism. Much the same could be said of Albert Adomah
I was not overly disappointed with Vitek performance as a few on here seem to be, I don’t know what people expected, I suppose after all the hype and possible transfer fee people were expecting a Gordon Banks type (other more recent keepers are available) and besides he has been here all of one week.
Come on BORO.
@exmil I don’t think anyone was “overly disappointed” but rather a bit surprised that he didn’t perform slightly more assuredly. For me I expected a more commanding presence in the box.
Plenty of time for him to find his feet but (to agree with Mrs B) I do feel a little sorry for Sol Brynn. There are plenty of outfield players who performed at a much lower level than him last season who are still keeping their place in the team.
@exmil a bit like Martin just said. Regardless of it being his first outing for us, I expected to see a more assured performance than we have seen consistently from Sol Brynn. That didn't happen, for whatever reason. We will get a better idea about him over the coming weeks. Still, you have to feel for Brynn who I believe could have served us well, improving along the way, for years to come without the need to spend heavily on another keeper.
It will be interesting to see what we all think in a couple of month's time.
On the subject of GK’s, it appears that Dieng has left for pastures new. I think he’s signed for a Greek club.
@powmillnaemore Possibly the hype that came with the signing of Vitek did not help the performance on Saturday.
However at 6’ 7” I did expect him to take some of the pressure off our smaller defenders against the towering Lincoln players. He did not do that in the 6 yard box.
I too would have stuck with Brynn and spent the Vitek money elsewhere in the first team.
But possibly like Andy, MFC have looked at the stats and think that he cost us too many points last season. So, one could argue, did Strelec, Whittaker and one or two more. He was also an ever present, unlike some, so earned his wages.
I wonder how much we will have written off on these two mistakes.
Rumours still continuing about Strelec, but that one would be an even bigger loss if that happened. Then we would need two more forwards possibly.
SENY Dieng has left Middlesbrough - and the goalkeeper looks set to be followed through the exit door by Sontje Hansen, with a move for the winger understood to be close.
Dieng's Boro contract was terminated by mutual consent and the 31-year-old has now linked up with Greek side Atromitos.
It's a good move for Boro. Dieng last made a competitive appearance for the first team in December, 2024, and, although he featured in pre-season, he wasn't in Kim Hellberg's plans for the coming season.
Boro have been trying to offload Dieng for a while. After losing his place in the side, the goalkeeper suffered a serious injury, but he looked set to move on in January when a loan move to Feyenoord was lined up and agreed, only for the deal to collapse at the last minute.
He was then left out of Boro's squad registered with the EFL for the second half of last season.
Regarding my post at the weekend about the lack of academy players in the starting 11, the last time it happened was not as long ago as I imagined. It was Bonfire night 2024 away to QPR in a 4-1 win. Only Fry and Brynn on the bench. Hackney didn't play as he had been sent off in the previous game, our regular home defeat to Coventry.
We cannot afford Strelec to leave as it leaves a gap in our squad if there would be injuries during the season.Rumours still continuing about Strelec, but that one would be an even bigger loss if that happened. Then we would need two more forwards possibly.
But something strange there is about him. Is he seriously injured or something else going behind the scenes? His picture is the only one missing from the team listing at https://www.mfc.co.uk/teams.
It's been missing for a few weeks now. During the time they have added some new players including Ashley Phillips who signed on Saturday. Surely Srelec should have been added there in the new home kit now.
Well, perhaps I am reading too much between the lines in there. I hope he is not inured badly and back soon.
BTW, did I count the number of players correctly as I have 23 players over 21-year-olds in the squad now (without Sotje Hansen who the Echo said to be close departure). The MFC teams web page does not list Hamilton nor Bangura anymore. So if Hansen, Hamilton and Bangura would be included, the squad would be 26, though.
Up the Boro!
@jarkko Unfortunately I think MFC have written Hamilton off as a failed buy. 3million was it, plus four years wages. Bangura also,
I assume they may also be hoping to move Edmundson on. Most probably a loan that covers some of his wages.
Add up the loss after write downs and it will not be insignificant. I would not be surprised for it to be at least five million.
@pedro As I used to say to my staff, the only way not to lose clients is not to have any in the first place. Inevitably some player signings will fail to make the grade but it’s not always possible to tell which ones before they’re signed.
In other words, you can’t win ‘em all.
...
In other words, you can’t win ‘em all.
Try telling that to Arsmanchelskipool supporters and they will never believe you
@martin-bellamy. That's a fair comment, but Hamilton, Sene, Hansen, Bangura have been poor buys, and in the last two seasons. Maybe even Strelec.
Fortunately we had success with Latte Lath, VDB, Spence and Rodgers.
Plus a surprise from the Academy in Hackney.
@martin-bellamy - The saying that I heard and used in my career (which KP in Spain will relate to also) was “If anyone says they never lost any money they lent, then they haven’t lent enough!