A strange thing, at least for a football fan, but your opinions about the mind set of the players (and the Manager) are precisely the same as mine. We were at home, check. On a Good run, check. We had at least one very Good Young player who would give them problems in the air, and would rough them up in the box, we were going to defend, just so they would have to attack, we were of course going to shoot, often. We were going to leave out Connolly, too quiet and docile, and small, for a cup tie which should have been full of incident (mainly them diving). We did none of the above. We virtually stood around, until, the kid and Sol came on, then they had to work , and did. The Connolly experiment must now end, and any promise to sign him must be repudiated at once, someone is not watching him during play, he is one disappointing player
@OFB, do you have any insight on Martin Payero's injury?
Is he already back on the grass training so that there could be a chance he might be on the bench at Peterborough on April 2nd?
Up the Boro!
A strange thing, at least for a football fan, but your opinions about the mind set of the players (and the Manager) are precisely the same as mine. We were at home, check. On a Good run, check. We had at least one very Good Young player who would give them problems in the air, and would rough them up in the box, we were going to defend, just so they would have to attack, we were of course going to shoot, often. We were going to leave out Connolly, too quiet and docile, and small, for a cup tie which should have been full of incident (mainly them diving). We did none of the above. We virtually stood around, until, the kid and Sol came on, then they had to work , and did. The Connolly experiment must now end, and any promise to sign him must be repudiated at once, someone is not watching him during play, he is one disappointing player
I’m always interested when us fans disagree with the team picked by the manager.
I’d never pick myself as someone who knows better than an experienced pro like CW, so why do we think he’s picking players that we wouldn’t have anywhere near the team? Is he desperate to stay in the Championship? Is he intent on winding us up, even though he knows he’s setting up the wrong team? Has he agreed to play those players even if it means we miss out on the play offs? Has he fallen out with those players that he doesn’t choose?
Or does he see something that we don’t? Are they brilliant in training but not during competitive matches? As manager, does he think he can turn them into better players?
I guess we’ll never know any of the answers to these questions, but I’m happy to let our manager do what he thinks best. On the whole it seems to be working well.
Too right Martin. Some fans would have Wilder dropping Tavernier and Lumley a few weeks ago.
Incidentally Forest’s last game in hand against Bournemouth will be played at the City Ground on the 3rd of May, 4 days before the final matches of the season when they will be away to Hull City.
Too right Martin. Some fans would have Wilder dropping Tavernier and Lumley a few weeks ago.
Incidentally Forest’s last game in hand against Bournemouth will be played at the City Ground on the 3rd of May, 4 days before the final matches of the season when they will be away to Hull City.
Ken, Forest game that was postponed this weekend was against Fulham, which will be played on April 26th same night as our postponed match against Cardiff will be played. The Bournemouth match was postponed the previous round of the FA cup, the same time as our match against Fulham was postponed, which we now play on the 6th April.
Come on BORO.
Jarkko
Ref Martin Payero injury I’ll ask around
OFB
EXMIL CHALLENGE 2022 (part 2)
The next round of fixtures have been posted on the challenge forum, good luck everyone, especially the Boro.
Come on BORO.
Paddy McNair has joined up with NI squad and expected to be involved which is a good sign, as long as he doesn’t get injured or make his existing foot problem any worse! 😎
Boro Chelsea
Tactical analysis
OFB
Boro Chelsea
Tactical analysis
OFB
Very interesting. He seems to be saying that Boro maintained a disciplined well thought out shape but were undone by a piece of tactical excellence which gave Lukaku his goal and one half mistake by Howson which allowed them to escape the block.
UTB
Boro Chelsea
Tactical analysis
OFB
Very interesting. He seems to be saying that Boro maintained a disciplined well thought out shape but were undone by a piece of tactical excellence which gave Lukaku his goal and one half mistake by Howson which allowed them to escape the block.
UTB
Leaving unsaid that had Boro a little more quality across the front third, we might have pushed Chelsea all of the way.
Relieved its all over though, as there is only one focus now.
Now that the dust has settled following an unprecedented FA Cup run for a second tier football club, it’s all about how Boro recover from a home defeat. I got the Chelsea result wrong, but I genuinely did think that Boro might just deliver the goods but for once Chris Wilder was outsmarted to some extent by arguably one of the best foreign coaches to manage in the Premier League. No shame in that on Wilder or his players as Thomas Tuchel had a squad of 25 super players to choose from. A great pity that Boro conceded twice in the first half to scuttle the FA Cup Final dream as the semifinal also went in Boro’s favour avoiding the two most outstanding clubs in Europe if not the World in Manchester City and Liverpool.
Admittedly Crystal Palace would also prove a difficult task, but Hartlepool United gave them a run for their money in the third round. Pools and their fans will also be disappointed to miss out on a Wembley appearance in the FA Trophy Final, but they have bounced back with a wonderful win at Rodney Parade against Newport County, but it will probably be asking too much from them to reach the playoffs in League 2. Nevertheless their bounce back ability is a credit to Graeme Lee and his players, so let’s hope that Boro can follow in their wake.
As Chris Wilder has said that his youngsters won’t have played in such a glorious FA Cup run and to hear how their fans have reacted and proacted especially against Chelsea must have made the Riverside Stadium sound like Wembley Stadium. On reflection the Chelsea defeat might prove to be a blessing in disguise as two more postponements over the Easter period might have been too much for this Boro team to recover from. It undoubtedly shows how remarkable it was for Boro in the 2005/06 season to play 64 matches the last 34 of which were crammed into 117 days as Boro reached the Europa Cup Final and the FA Cup Semifinal but Boro had 4 international strikers in Yakubu, Hasselbaink, Viduka and Maccarone at that time. That was then, but this is now although I haven’t heard such a cacophony of noise for the start of a match at the Riverside as last Saturday.
I thoroughly enjoyed the match, as it was an OCCASION that will go down as an iconic event despite the defeat, and hopefully a learning curve especially for the young players who should be more determined as ever to play in the Premier League.
I spent yesterday catching up on my reading, and was mollified and proud that I reviewed Boro’s first 25 years of existence and sincerely grateful to Werdermouth in collating all those years into one chapter of over 400 lines. I can hardly realise that I wrote about all those seasons as if I was there, and although most Boro fans won’t have heard of any of the players mentioned, it brought back happy memories of some of the Boro stalwarts who were living legends during those historical years leading up to the First World War. The names of James McCracken, Alex Wardrope, Joe Cassidy, Joe Brearley, plus internationals such as Tim Williamson, Alf Common, Steve Bloomer and George Elliott still ring in my memory as if I had seen them play. All except Williamson who played even up to the Second World War, all pre-First World War heroes
Further on I wrote about George Camsell, James McLelland and Willie Pease who many of you will have heard of, then Micky Fenton, Wilf Mannion, George Hardwick of the 1950s, and all the Boro legends up to 2002. I sometimes find it hard to believe that so many wonderful players had played for Boro. Anyway thanks to Werdermouth you can read about all these players on Diasboro.worldpress.com. Essential reading for those who love to read about Boro’s history, and I intend to read up about them even though I find it hard to believe sometimes that through research I was the perpetrator of those halcyon days of history.
Looking at the International log on the MFC Website, it doesn’t mention Riley McGree or Australia fixtures, does this mean he hasn’t traveled and the latest update from Australia is that they are without McGree due to a calf injury.
Come on BORO.
Lumley was directly responsible for the goal when wandering off his line, and it was a nothing goal, easily picked up had he been at home, And no we cannot drop him because he's the best we have. Many people think that our veteran central defender should be getting plenty of pitch time, when he came on in the cup tie he bossed their giant 'striker' and bossed our defence instructing them where they should be, including our Keeper (on his goal line, as it happens).
I did the Gazette’s Championship challenge just for fun and came up with Fulham 94, Bournemouth 84, Forest 80, Luton 78, Sheffield Utd 77 and Huddersfield 74. Boro in 7th place on 71, but of course if the rules are changing and Boro get SIX points for beating Huddersfield then Boro will qualify. I also don’t see ANY teams dropping points like Reading and Derby, as you can’t drop points that you’ve never had. But then what do I know?
I did the Gazette’s Championship challenge just for fun and came up with Fulham 94, Bournemouth 84, Forest 80, Luton 78, Sheffield Utd 77 and Huddersfield 74. Boro in 7th place on 71, but of course if the rules are changing and Boro get SIX points for beating Huddersfield then Boro will qualify. I also don’t see ANY teams dropping points like Reading and Derby, as you can’t drop points that you’ve never had. But then what do I know?
I’ve always taken a six pointer to be a game where your rival can’t get 3 points whilst you’re playing that week because they’re playing your team. If you beat them you get three points but they haven’t had the opportunity to get three points elsewhere. Or something like that. 😉
In any event it’s a popular idiom used by many fans.
Dropped points are ones where, for example your team is 2-0 up after 45 minutes, but the manager changes tactics at half time to defend the win, instead of carrying on for more goals. You had 3 points but handed 2 of them back. I’m sure that’s not happened to the Boro in recent times. 😉
EXMIL CHALLENGE 2022 - part 1 Table
1. werdermouth 10,10,6,6,9,9,9,7,10,9 = 85
2. Ian Gill 9,9,9,6,8,7,9,10,10,8 = 85
3. Clive Hurren 7,10,7,5,7,10,8,9,10,8 = 81
4. Martin Bellamy 9,7,9,3,7,9,9,9,10,8 = 80
5. Norfolk and Boro 9,7,9,3,8,10,9,8,8,9 = 80
6. jarkko 9,9,9,6,6,7,8,9,10,7 = 80
7. Original Fat Bob 9,9,9,3,9,6,7,9,9,9 = 79
8. Andy R 9,8,6,6,9,8,8,8,10,5 = 77
9. len masterman 9,8,8,5,7,8,8,10,9,5 = 77
10. K P in Spain 9,7,9,6,6,9,7,8,7,9 = 77
11. Selwynoz 10,8,3,6,6,9,9,9,7,9 = 76
12. Peasepudinperth 7,10,6,5,6,6,9,7,10,9 = 75
13. Powmill-Naemore 8,9,8,6,9,5,8,7,10,4 = 74
14. MW in Darwin 7,7,10,8,5,8,9,4,8,8 = 74
15. exmil 5,9,8,4,7,9,7,9,9,6 = 73
16. Forever Dormo 8,10,3,7,6,7,9,9,6,7 = 72
17. deleriad 9,8,6,5,6,9,9,7,8,5 = 72
18. Pedro de Espana 9,8,7,6,7,9,5,4,9,5 = 69
After part 1, werdermouth and Ian Gill are in the automatic promotion spots, while Clive Hurren, Martin Bellamy, Norfolk and Boro and jarkko occupy the playoff places. Looking at the dreaded trapdoor are Pedro de Espana, deleriad and Forever Dormo but with parts 2 & 3 to go, all could change, good luck everyone especially the Boro.
If anyone notices any errors or think I have scored them incorrectly, please let me know.
Come on BORO.
@ Exmil. Many thanks; good fun and much appreciated from the wet and cold Costa Brava. 😎
As Boro’s magnificent FA Cup run comes to an end, Castleford’s starts this Saturday with a live BBC match against Leeds Rhinos at Headingley. Both Cas and the Rhinos have made disastrous starts in Super League this year with both clubs having won only one match in their 6 matches so far. I’m not surprised that many Cas fans are also Leeds United fans, but am somewhat taken aback at how many Cas fans also support Boro instead of Leeds United.
The big talking point though is whether Cas should play a weakened side against Leeds and concentrate on preserving their Super League status. But ask any Cas player if they’d rather lose to Leeds, and you’d get the same reaction from Boro players if they were in a similar situation in sending out a weakened side against Sunderland. Players of both sports love to play in their respective Cup competitions which Cas reached last year only to lose narrowly to St Helens at a restricted capacity Wembley Stadium due to Covid. This years Final is scheduled to be played at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium which probably will have a capacity of only 57,000 whereas when I related my experience of the 1969 Final between Cas and Salford which was the first and only final to attract a full capacity of 100,000 at the former Wembley Stadium and only 2,569 short of the record crowd attendance that watched the 1954 Cup replay match at Odsal, Bradford between Warrington and Halifax.
It’s too early in the season to be concerned about relegation and Cas have had the better of matches against Leeds recently, but have never beaten Leeds when it really mattered at Wembley or Old Trafford in the Super League Final. I explained how fortunate I was to watch 3 Cas Wembley wins and after my cousin-in-law played in the 1970 final to have my photograph taken holding the Rugby League Challenge Cup aloft in the Cas boardroom later. These Cup Final wins are the pinnacle of both sports especially for the players, and also for most fans. It’s a shame that Boro fans have never been able to win this prestigious trophy although the Carling Cup win in 2004 must come close.
I dreamt as a child that I’d live to see Boro win the FA Cup but Chelsea have once again scuppered that dream, but thankfully since supporting Cas since 1962 at least I have had some minor compensations with Cas.
EXMIL CHALLENGE 2022 - part 1 Table
werdermouth has kindly (and honestly) pointed out an error with his score which has now placed him in second place, 1 point behind Ian Gill. If anyone else notices an error with their score please advise and I will adjust the table, thanks.
Come on BORO.
Lovely spring sunshine in North Yorkshire, KP. And although the weather forecast suggested it would be 17C, it is MUCH warmer than that in the sun. A perfect day to watch cricket with a pint in hand.
(In fact the 3rd Test has started in Grenada where the West Indies are bowling and England's first wicket has gone down - 23-1 with Crawley out for 7, Lees 15 not out and Root having just come to the wicket).
@dormo We have had about ten days of plain sunshine. At best the temperature has been 16°C and more in the sun. But because we have had so much snow this winter, we still have about one foot of snow left.
But roads are clear of snow and ice already. And days are much longer now!
Up the Borol
18°C in the County Palatine today - a day for painting and garden tidying, pre-house sale. Long may it continue.
County Durham? Have you moved already?
I’ve even been on the road today and made a 95 mile round to visit my younger brother. Considering I only drove 197 miles in total last year due to covid and lockdown it’s been quite a trip, though I don’t think I’ll renew my car taxation next November as at my age I don’t feel safe on the road any more and have lost confidence. Considering I used to drive down to the Algarve and back every winter, I think it’s time to call it a day.
Thanks Exmil for the league table. Well it certainly shows that I know nothing about football and what the Boro can achieve. I do hope they continue to prove me wrong.
Also disappointing is the weather in Southern Spain. We have had tremendous rain storms combined with a continuous deluge of sand from the Sahara covering everywhere. It’s true!! I have not seen it this bad in over twenty years.
The other phenomena is the spooky orange sky.