BORO v Norwich
Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough
15h00, Saturday 12th September 2026
|
|
Played |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
PTS |
POS'n |
|
BORO |
5 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
8 |
5 |
3 |
10 |
6th |
|
Norwich |
6 |
3 |
0 |
3 |
10 |
9 |
1 |
10 |
9th |
OK then. Here we go for my first outing of the season following my close season surgery. I have to confess, for what I thought was going to be a relatively small thing, it is taking me longer than I imagined getting back to full fitness and , having been absent from my work for a few weeks meant coming back to work to a whole host of issues that built up in my absence.
Why am I starting with this information? Well it is my way of apologising for not having had the time I expected to work on my idea for this. So, if the following all seems a little half-baked and not at all refined I apologise, but I hope it is a little bit amusing and offers something for everyone to get their teeth into.
Recipe for a Riverside Roast: How to Cook a Canary
Prep Time: 90 minutes (plus a pinch of stoppage time)
Cooking Temp: A red-hot Riverside Stadium
Serves: ~30,000 expectant Teessiders
Today we are preparing a hearty, traditional Saturday afternoon feast.
I know our feathered guests from Norfolk have a very famous cook sitting in their boardroom, but when it comes to the Championship right now, we know it’s Boro who hold the winning recipe. So, in the immortal words of the lady herself: “Let’s be ‘aving you!”
Ingredients
- 1 Pride of Red Lions: Freshly prepared, hitting their stride, and left to rest for 60 hours in 6th place since Wednesday.
- 1 Flock of Fresh Canaries: Herded into 9th place by Philippe Clement. (After initially looking to be coming into season early with a 4-1 Carabao win over MK Dons, they went dormant after that false start with two straight league defeats to West Brom and Millwall. However, after 4 wins in their last 5 they have fully grown and will be far from easy pickings.)
- 2 Pinches of Colman’s English Mustard: Courtesy of Pelle Mattsson and José Córdoba. Packing 30 fouls and 5 yellow cards between them, this pair is guaranteed to bring plenty of heat to the pitch.
- Sweeteners to Taste: Handle with care. Try to neutralize any sudden re-appearance of Mo Touré—any sudden sweetness he adds for Norwich can counteract the sweetness Will Lankshear adds from our front line.
- 1 Generous Helping of Recent History: Over the last four seasons, Boro have mastered this dish—winning 6 of the last 8 meetings (with 2 draws). Norwich haven't managed a win at the Riverside since November 2020.
Method
- Preheat the Riverside: The atmosphere needs to be simmering nicely by 3:00 PM. Getting the Riverside rocking early is essential to setting the base for a three-point finish.
- Apply Early Pressure: These Canaries will soften quickly when pressed high up the pitch, having already absorbed 11 goals in 8 games. But watch the splash-back—with 16 goals scored across all competitions, they can scald you if you get careless on the rebound.
- Maintain Control: Dominating possession is key, but don't fall into old habits. Avoid over-stirring the ball endlessly around midfield and the back line. Instead, sift sharp, direct passes right through their midfield to cause maximum agitation in the opposition penalty area.
- Bring to a Boil: Once control is established, fold in that recent historical dominance. Turn up the heat, lift the roof off the Riverside, and watch OFB’s famous 'Boro 3' emerge from the pan.
- Serve & Enjoy: After 90 minutes of constant, high-tempo roasting, the Canaries should be fully carved and ready to serve.
So, savour all three points and send Norwich back down to East Anglia with plenty to chew on.
Bon appétit, Diasboro!
I wasn’t kidding with Boro3. I really hope we will be sharper and faster at the back to hang on to that clean sheet, but I worry Norwich have been useful in front of goal this term and so see us shipping one or even two goals .
Boro 3 – Norwich 2 is my prediction.
Given recent discussions in here, how much of that recipe was from me or was any of it AI….?
I loved that P-N - it’s hard to come up with something new as a starter and I’m kicking myself that I’ve never used your cooking analogy. Chef’s kiss to you!
Thanks Powmill for that Michelin-style treat. Less a starter, more a sumptuous main course.
I saw the Norwich - Birmingham match and the Canaries were outplayed for almost the whole of the first half, but went in 2-0 up, courtesy of two excellent strikes. The pattern of the game was similar to the Boro-Palace game which surprised me since I expected Norwich to be very much on the front foot as they had been when they demolished Burnley in the first half of their previous home game.
My pre-season expectations were that Norwich would continue their fine form from the end of last season when they pulled themselves up from being possible relegation candidates to just missing out on the play-off places.
However, there was little evidence of free-flowing football from Norwich as they spluttered their way through most of the first half with a succession of misplaced passes and poor control. But they did score two excellent goals via a long-range strike and a well-worked pull-back from the right wing.
Birmingham came back with a goal in the second half but the Canaries held on.
So I expect Boro to be on the front foot for much of Saturday's game but Norwich can be lethal on the break.
Boro really do need to turn their territorial advantage into goals. So no change there then.
We have to shoot on sight rather than endlessly recycling the ball and play with two wingers who are interested in getting to the bye-line .If we don't, we may be looking at a similar outcome to the Palace game.
Still I'm hoping for a reasonably comfortable 3-1.
I have deliberated, cogitated and digested and judge that Powmill has delivered a very tasty entree indeed and I am now hoping that Boro can find the recipe for a main course to match that quality! A great piece of work, thank you.
I will be going to the match and I don’t want to hear the Canaries singing and that the lions in red will be able to keep them quiet and knock the stuffing out of them. That said, I am sure that hot off their win midweek they will want to carry on carving their way up the table and Boro will have to be on the boil from the start and get at them without leaving ourselves open at the back.
Let’s hope that KH has worked out what his best starting eleven and formation is now that all the new players should be fit and integrated into his way of playing.
Looks like it will be a full house again and I am hopeful of seeing another Boro victory although I don’t want it to in the dying minutes as in the Lincoln game so for me it’s 3 0.
Thanks for a tasty opener Powmill. I think that this will be a good test against a good Norwich side that has a number of pacy players. Apart from Mo Toure they also have Andre Brooks who played really well against us last season for Sheffield United. Mo Toure and Slimane were both rested for the Birmingham game. Toure has scored more goals in the Championship since his debut in February than any other player. He has 12 goals in 16 matches. He is one of Australia's refugee footballers. Born in a refugee camp in Guinea, family displaced by the Liberian Civil war, and moved to Australia with his siblings. Referee is Adam Herczeg, whose last Boro game was the last home game of last season when we won 5-1 against Watford. Any chance of a repeat on Saturday? I doubt it we possibly may have to settle for a draw.
I'm trying to decide if I would happily take 7 points from the three games before the break?
Haven't quite decided yet but three points against Norwich would be a great start.
UTB
Many thanks Powmill for that beautifully prepared delicious starter - we can only hope Boro are cooking on Saturday and Norwich get their just desserts...
If Hellberg's team play anything like the first half against Palace then it should be a feast to savour!
@Exmil Further to our depate about the transfee fee of Hamilton from Man City to Boro
According to FLW, he joined Middlesbrough in the summer of 2024 for an initial fee of £2 million, potentially rising to £3.7 million with add-ons.
so I think this explains the two different fees mentioned recently.
Up the Boro!