@original-fat-bob - Thanks for that link (about Hayden Hackney), Bob. It reflects what I think all of us on this blog think about HH.
@original-fat-bob - Thanks for that link (about Hayden Hackney), Bob. It reflects what I think all of us on this blog think about HH.
Totally agree. Who was the last midfielder that we have seem who is so comfortable receiving the ball and then finding a genuine forward pass. We have to sign him up for at least 3 1/2 years.
As for the penalty - he has to work on his defence and learn how to stand up and not give away rash free kicks.
utb
@selwynoz. “Who was the last midfielder that we have seem who is so comfortable receiving the ball and then finding a genuine forward pass.”
How about another Scot, one Graham Souness or Bobby Murdoch albeit the latter was employed by us as a right winger. Great players both in the true sense of the word in my opinion. 😎
I see Craig John's in the Gazette has had a go at giving an (almost) half-term report card for the players. https://www.gazettelive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/middlesbrough-mid-season-report-cards-25553093
Quite tricky because it's been a season of 1 half and 2 quarters. 11 games under Wilder, 5 under Leo, 5 under Carrick.
Thinking of the games under Wilder then I would give Akpom and Giles an A grade but everyone else E-C. Tricky to give Akpom an A because he only played 3 1/2 games due to injury but he was influential in all of them.
Under Leo, no one really stood out. Hackney is probably a solid B for his performances in those games. Akpom continued as an A but Giles drifted down to a C. Most players were probably turning in around about C to B-rated performances in those games. Steffen was improving to around about a C+ level having been a pretty shaky D-rating under Wilder.
Under Carrick, there has been some massive improvements. Hackney, Akpom and Howson have all been A+ rated. The defence (Giles, Lenihan, Fry, Smith) has seen solid B+/A- levels. Jones and McGree have also been A-/B+ level. Forss has improved to a solid B. In general, all the starters have been performing at B or better levels in the last 4-5 games. Steffen has been playing at around B+.
The only player to really fall off under Carrick is Muniz. The likes of McNair, Dijksteel, Bola and Mowatt haven't had the game time to judge them fairly. It is also probably unfair to rate Crooks as he has been carrying a hernia. On strict performance levels he has been an E most of the season but his late winner against Norwich was classic, old-school Crooks so Carrick may be nursing him back to his best.
KP in Spain
Surely that must have been Emerson. The best foreigner Boro ever signed in my opinion.
I read and enjoy all the contributors to this blog, so I will make a comment on our new Coach, which should bring a lot of comments, some of them anguished! He was always an unexploded bomb. Being kept on the payroll by Utd. As they ran through a few Managers, because he was trusted by Fergie. He had no reason to start in this division, that was our Good luck. With a well stocked youth Acadamy, and a team that was uncoached and shockingly Managed, by a veteran past his sell by date. He has done better than Good, and left alone, I believe that he will get us promotion this season.
I read and enjoy all the contributors to this blog, so I will make a comment on our new Coach, which should bring a lot of comments, some of them anguished! He was always an unexploded bomb. Being kept on the payroll by Utd. As they ran through a few Managers, because he was trusted by Fergie. He had no reason to start in this division, that was our Good luck. With a well stocked youth Acadamy, and a team that was uncoached and shockingly Managed, by a veteran past his sell by date. He has done better than Good, and left alone, I believe that he will get us promotion this season.
I don't believe MC will get us promoted this season.
I do think that if he is able to maintain the impact he is having on the squad then he could get us promoted this season.
The jury is still out on that . All the same it would be a fine thing if your faith in him is well placed, so fingers well and truly crossed you are right.
Whatever, promotion or not, I hope that by and large the better quality football on offer as well as the results continues and gives uus all something to look forward to for season 2022/23 Part Two.
KP in Spain
Surely that must have been Emerson. The best foreigner Boro ever signed in my opinion.
Whilst I agree that Emerson could be an amazing player when he was up for it and I loved to watch him play, he wouldn’t be my top foreigner. It’s hard to see past the Little Fella, but Viduka must be up there, along with Boksic on his day. I’ve not seen anyone calmer in front of goal.
A pity that the Hibs-Boro match won't be streamed on Saturday. The next match to be seen via BoroLive will be the Luton match on 10th December.
How can we wait that far? Up the Boro!
Just seen these two clips of Kamil Conteh playing on loan at Gateshead. He is only 19 and was signed when he was released by Watford. He is a full international for Sierra Leone. One for the future.
Some of the Boro youngsters who could be given a chance this season by a manager who’s not afraid to use “the kids”
OFB
Jeremy Sivi shined every bit as bright as Isaiah Jones... *rolls eyes & shakes head* Local journos. I give up...
@mw-in-darwin - First clip was Hereford Utd v Newcastle Utd of FA Cup fame. Second WAS of Gateshead v Southend Utd, so thanks for that.
@original-fat-bob - HH = Agent Hackney, infiltrating the Scottish teams. He will have many finer moments in football in the years to come and hopefully very many in a Boro shirt.
@original-fat-bob - HH = Agent Hackney, infiltrating the Scottish teams. He will have many finer moments in football in the years to come and hopefully very many in a Boro shirt.
I saw that too. And then I couldn't make out who was Conteh on the small screen on my phone ☹
Hay, Boro will play at Hibs on Saturday!
What would be the line-up of Boro in Edinburgh? We might give an oppitunity to the fringe players like Dijksteel and McNair or some of the youngsters.
Or we might play with the familiar line-up and practise something new.
What do you think? I would go for a 2-2 draw with a Boro experimental team. Up to seven changes from the Norwich match.
Up the Boro!
@jarkko I am disappointed that it is not being streamed! 😢😎
Hay, Boro will play at Hibs on Saturday!
What would be the line-up of Boro in Edinburgh? We might give an oppitunity to the fringe players like Dijksteel and McNair or some of the youngsters.
Or we might play with the familiar line-up and practise something new.
What do you think? I would go for a 2-2 draw with a Boro experimental team. Up to seven changes from the Norwich match.
Up the Boro!
I don't know. I think we might start with the normal 1st 11 and a couple of changes but maybe make a lot of changes at half-time.
I do think that the likes of McNair, Dijksteel, Bola need a chance to show what they can do, providing (of course) that they have been making a case in training. Would also like to see Willis and maybe another from the U21s get a run out.
Thing is, going with a virtually second 11 actually makes all the players look worse and doesn't tell you what you need to know. Things we need to know. Can someone cover for Howson in midfield. How well do Dijksteel and Jones link up. Can Hoppe play in one of the two striker's roles. You can only ever ask 2 or 3 of those questions at most otherwise you end up with a mess.
I think I might start the game with
Steffen
Dijksteel - Fry - Lenihan - Giles
Hackney - Mowatt/McNair
Jones - Akpom - Watmore
Forss
We have only played 5 games under Carrick and the players are still learning his system. In particular, Giles is not a natural left-back and Forss is still trying to build up match sharpness.
I do not think that our coach will even think about picking a team to beat the opposition, he is a coach who desperately needs to do ten things at once. Checking out more of his Young players, trying out more styles of play, getting to know his best combination, dead ball situations, free kicks, who is his dead ball man? All need answering.
I think there will be no commentary of Boro vs Hibs on BBC Radio Tees, either. They will naturally concentrate on Hartlepool's league match. It would have been nice to listen to the Boro, too.
Still 15 days to go before Boro play Luton. Up the Boro!
No league match today for Pools Jarkko, but a tasty home FA Cup match at home to Harrogate Town.
Josh Coburn has been made eligible to play in the FA Cup by parent club Middlesbrough, and is likely to go straight into the first team on Sunday.
OFB
So it looks like Josh is going to stay at Bristol all season with no recall !
OFB
Does anyone remember Lawrie Reilly, arguably the most famous Hibernian player of the early 50s? I saw him a couple of times, once playing on the wing for the Scottish League against the Football League at Ayresome Park, but also for Hibs in a friendly against Boro. He was a member of the famous forward line that terrorised Rangers at the time which also included Gordon Smith, Bobby Johnstone,
Does anyone remember Lawrie Reilly, arguably the most famous Hibernian player of the early 50s? I saw him a couple of times, once playing for the Scottish League against the Football League at Ayresome Park, but also for Hibs in a friendly against Boro. He was a member of the famous forward line that terrorised Rangers at the time which also included Gordon Smith, Bobby Johnstone, Eddie Turnbull and Willie Ormond. It was arguably only second to the Manchester United five of Jimmy Delaney, Johnny Morris, Jack Rowley, Stan Pearson and Charlie Mitten who played in the 1948 FA Cup Final.
Reilly’s one regret was not playing for his country in the World Cup finals, once because he caught pleurisy, the other because as I mentioned previously Scotland refused to send a team to the World Cup finals unless they won the Home Championship that season which of course they failed to do.
Reilly also had a conversion rate of 61% in Scotland’s international matches, exceeding those of Kenny Dalglish, Dennis Law and Joe Jordan, quite an impressive record!
Now comes my dilemma as I can’t find any definitive reference to Boro’s friendly matches on its website although it does mention the Festival of Britain 2-3 defeat to Partizan Belgrade in 1948 although not the 4-0 home win to the Brazilian club of Bella Vista. Perhaps Boro don’t consider friendly matches as so important, as seems likely as today’s match at Easter Road will in the fullness of time.
Perhaps Len might remember!
No league match today for Pools Jarkko, but a tasty home FA Cup match at home to Harrogate Town.
I was looking at the BBC Radio Tees schedule and saw the Harrogate match. I forgot it was the FA Cup weekend as I am not living locally. The two team play in the same league, too.
Thanks for correcting me, Ken.
And Boro play at Hibernian at 13:00 GMT today.
Up the Boro!
From the Gazette blog:
Boro team news is in!
Starting XI: Daniels, Smith, McNair, Robinson, Collins, Howson, Boyd-Munce, Willis, Crooks, Watmore, Muniz
Subs: Roberts, N Fisher, Giles, Mowatt, Hannah, Finch, Traore, Hoppe, Dijksteel, Woolston, Akpom