FIGHT Night. For those who couldn’t wait for Bolton battler Amir Khan’s bout later on there was a tasty undercard at the Riverside. A tedious end of season trudge was flat-lining when it all kicked off. Big style. Ding, ding; Seconds out.
With little evidence of any previous needle in the game, suddenly a furious fist swinging 18 man brawl erupted that involved players from both sides shaking each other warmly by the throat and staff wading in from both dug-outs to haul away the combatants while Mowbray watched philosophically with the ball under his arm as the wild west brawl spilled off the pitch and through the advertising hoardings. It was fantastic fisticuff fun and high octane entertainment. Far more than the tired match offered, that’s for sure.
The flashpoint came on 69 minutes as Barnsley’s Paul ‘Slugger’ McShane and Kevin ‘Tackler’ Thomson tussled over a ball near the touchline in front of the technical areas. McShane came steaming through the back of Thomson as he shielded the ball and the Boro man reacted by picking himself up and charging after then, it appeared, aimed a frustrated kick in the general direction of his mugger. McShane reacted and the pair did that rutting stags chest to chest posturing. It was “macho” stuff as Mogga later conceded.
Meanwhile a series of other keenly contested bouts broke out as players from both sides ran over to engage in some militant peace-keeping. Snarlweight scrapper Joe Bennett was first on the scene and did his best to calm the situation down by grabbing McShane by the throat and the Barnsley man reacted by taking a swipe. Bennett kept his stranglehold tightly applied and as other players arrived to pile on the pair staggered sidewards and Bennett went sprawling and was flattened into the hoardings with half-a-dozen bodies on top of him. Fair play to him though, he never let go of McShane.
Elsewhere Andrew Taylor and Jacob Mellis were also involved in a vigourous exchange of views, expressed through the medium of pushing and shoving. They were on the fringe of what by now had become a furious cartoon scrum of people trying to haul team-mates and opponents away from the epicentre only to then get sucked or pushed into the maelstrom themselves. Very funny. It certainly lived a dull game up.
Now we have to wait to see if retrospective refereeing comes into play. It probably won’t as the match wasn’t being broadcast abroad so was filmed on one fixed camera… although that said, that one will have got a great view. If it is reviewed by the arbitrary faceless panel then both Bennett and Thomson should be a little bit worried.
Up to that point the game had been far from remarkable. Boro had been poor. A patched up side with four changes looked tired and disjointed. Barnsley played the better football and but for some poor finishing and a great save from Paul Smith they could maybe have had the game wrapped up by the time the punch-up sparked the crowd and galvanised the team.
Has Marlon Harewood ever NOT scored against Boro? Did he score? He did well to bring the ball down on his chest and his first effort was just a hopeful poke that was blocked by Smith and his second effort was screaming across the face of goal and possibly going wide it was maybe an oggy off the despairing challenge of Andrew Davies.
But after the scrap and with the space afforded by the extra man, Boro had an extra buzz. They had some good efforts and Barry Robson fired just wide and Tarmo Kink headed a fraction over before Scott McDonald headed the leveller late on.
In a perfect world the outstanding Rhys Williams would have got the winner deep in stoppage time. With his telescopic go-go-gadget legs the Aussie had put in some excellent timely tackles to tidy up in midfield, and with some deft footwork on the ball he creates acres of time and space for himself. That was almost put to great use as he scooped up a touch from Willo Flood – his first appearance since the opening day of the season – and burst forward and past two challenges then cut into the Barnsley box before what would have been a dream goal was denied by the challenge of Hill.
We got lucky. The brawl and the sending off jump-started a game that was fizzzling out into a dull 1-0 defeat. Instead Boro showed that now habitual resolve – and a flash of teeth – and even after a subdued show they came back for the fourth game in a row at the Riverside and stretched their unbeaten record to eight games.
Ten points clear, five left. Only the most miserable chicken-runner armed with a pessimistic calaculator and a doom-laden theoretical mathematical model could create a scenario that takes Boro down now.
****
IT WAS nice to see a few regular bloggers turn out for a pre-match lubrication in the Navigation to meet Untypical Boro’s Finnish delegation. And a group from Munich flew in as well. Angels all over the world. What a bunch of pleasant, good looking, erudite, well balanced and enthusiastic people you are.
untypicalboro 
I believe the live blog didnât work today. Well it has to be put on record that Mr Vic was a model of professionalism. I couldnât even buy him an OJ.
But to the Boro supporters who missed the match, I feel you deserve an in depth match report and analysis.
It was rubbish.
11 v 11 we would have lost, but we got lucky, kept on going and got a point. That is a positive, not much else was.
But the main event today was pre match and meeting fellow bloggers, AV and the King of Finland. Jarkko, as you would probably guess is a very genial, funny and big Boro fan. I should hate him. My raison dâetre was that Iâm not from Middlesbrough yet I am still afflicted by the same illness. But he is a proper fan from a long long way away.
Who I feel sorry for is his wife. What has the lovely Eija done to deserve this? Holidays should be sun and fun based. April in the north of England? Thatâs love!
It certainly puts my petty squabbles with N o t t i n g h a m, into perspective, I just hope we win one of our next three games for them.
I was delighted to meet Dormo, a wealth of knowledge and he even bought me a pint, a great great man!! Clive I donât feel that I got to bend your ear enough but then we have the blog. Halifax (sans Hat) brilliant to meet you and Josh and everyone else.
And Vic, was a pleasure to meet you, Iâm sure most Journoâs wouldnât have come let alone have a good chat. Donât want to sound like a lick spittle but in my best Waylon Smithers impression we are lucky to have a blog of such quality.
Roll on next season.
It was a great scrap, the best I can remember at the Riverside and the first I can remember that has gone through the hordings like that. It really got the crowd stoked up. We needed something like that.
Its great that players are ready to scrap for the club. The last few weeks have shown that there is areal spirit there. McManus needed stitches but played on, Hines got his jaw smashed but played on, and then everyone piles in to help out Thomson.
Respect to Bennett too. He is a scrawny little thing but he is fearless. He was the first to wade in and grab McShane. And I remember at Leeds he ran 30 yards to have a go at one of their giant defenders. He has got real fire in his belly.
Apart from Williams late effort the game was a non-event and we were lucky to get a point out of it with the fightback.
I was running late and nearly didn’t make the kick off, reality was there were 11 others in the ground who didn’t make it either.
This was a patched up team far short of match fitness and patently unused to playing together and generally struggling to get into the pace of the game. The support from the terraces was there from the off but it sadly didn’t manifest itself on the pitch.
Thommo looked lively early on but then saw the game pass him by as Barnsley changed tactics. Robbo reverted to type and spent most of the game on his backside every time a challenge came in which interrupted any fluidity or movement we had (which in fairness wasn’t much). Halliday looked OK but never likely to repeat the Portman Road experience in a team which was so disjointed.
Defensively we were shocking, calamitous best summed up the 1st half. Even Paul Smith seemed unsettled as Mac and Davo done their best impression of the Chuckle Brothers in front of him.
All those negatives well and truly burst the balloon for those of us hoping for a goal fest. This is new Boro however and despite it being a turgid battle at best against a side that was fitter, sharper and hungrier the never say die spirit may have been dormant but still there.
The McShane inspired “Cuddle fest” was the catalyst for lifting flagging hearts. The sight of Boro players literally piling in for one another in a Musketeer like free for all on 70 minutes got the adrenelin flowing around the Riverside for what has now become the trademark Typical “new Boro” comeback.
Smallwood and Kink’s arrival shortly after the handbags were put back on the dancefloor provided some fresh legs and impetus. Williams then came close in a mazy dribble that resulted in a desperate deflected Barnsley clearance. A pin point rocket cross from Tarmo soon afterwards on the right flank left his foot with aplomb as he swivelled round, destined for Macs Quarter pounder flying into the net, game on.
The 10 men from South Yorkshire then piled forward to take the game to us in an effort to get the winner but bizarrely seemed caught in two minds as they wasted time simultaneously as their keeper constantly adjusted his corset and Marlon gave an Oscar performance of “Who me, you mean me, when, where, you mean now, over there” and proceded to walk off the pitch via Port Clarence and hugged several members of his supporting cast and crew on his way to the touchline.
So this wasn’t Champagne stuff, in fact it was dour for the most part, possibly the worst performance from a Mowbray team in months. Yet once again we came from behind, once again we didn’t get beat and once again we scored in the dying moments instead of conceding.
Willo Flood got back on the pitch, Tommo survived a few crunching tackles and got back up, McManus got another 90 minutes under his belt, Arca and Bates got a well earned rest and overall a patched up side came through against the odds. If you can’t win then draw ugly, just don’t get beat best sums up the afternoon.
What was significant about todays game?
Mogga brought back in,basically Strachan’s boys together again ,the ones who couldnt hack it together at the start of the season,and what did we get?
A Strachan performance
If Mogga does it again I for one am OUT
Nice one, Redcar Red. After that, just a few points so I will keep it short:
1. Best bit of the afternoon was to meet some fellow bloggers and put faces to nom de plumes. And I noted some coming over, long-time readers of the blog who didn’t send in their own posts but were still interested to read what was there. Come on, chaps, don’t be shy…
2. The first half was played as though some sleeping-draught had been put in the Boro pre-match drinks. As poor a half of football as we have seen for a while. Barnsley actually looked quite handy. They were good value for their half-time lead.
3. It was a good goal fashioned by Tarmo Kink’s perfect cross, and headed home from a decent distance (near the penalty spot) by McDonald, who worked his socks off again.
4. A draw was fine on the balance of play. I am sure Barnsley feel a little hard done-to (especially after that first half).
5. The best bit of the game was the fight. Better than wondering who might be sent off , I am, of course against physical violence unless there is no other way out. But it is good to see SOME spirit from players.
Maybe some editted highlights (of the violence) to be issued soonish would help. Hope everyone is happy and fine.
I was warned by my Scottish friends fron both the Celtic and Rangers camps. McManus will leak goals. Since his return sadly this is true.
Great fighting spirit in all ways. Roll on next season
Totally agree with AV and Smog on the beano: what a brilliant bunch of people!
At the risk of stealing Jarkko’s thunder (don’t know if he will be blogging before he gets to mine, where there’s a laptop to play with), let me tell you all what occurred when we got to the Riverside.
Anthony Emmerson, Head of Supporter Services, was fantastic! He gave Jarkko and Eija the best part of 45 minutes of largely undivided attention, introducing him to the people inside the club, arranging for three complimentary seats up near the suits (and near the Leeds and Liverpool scouts) so we could sit together for this one, letting us on the pitch before the players went out.
He also gave Jarkko a shirt signed by all the players. Couldn’t have been more welcoming! Jarkko was like a teenager, lapping it all up!
With all the excitement, and, in his own words “because he was having such a good time” with our friends in the Navi, he and Eija failed to get lunch until half-time. And what did he and Eija have for their late lunch? Their first parmo!
**AV writes: Now they really are “two of our own.”
The highlights appear to have been the beano and the scrap with most of the rest forgettable.
I did have a sneaking suspicion that Vic had stayed in the navi but swiftly banished such thoughts from the mind. I suppose a bit of a damp squib Saturday but another point gained with a patched up squad.
A fraught week coming up with away games against a couple of the teams fighting for the last play off spot. To be truthful I would be pleased with anything before the visit of Coventry and Marlon King scoring the obligatory goal.
The matches on Firday will be interesting with Scunthorpe going to Coventry in their bid to escape the drop and Donnie and Palace battling to keep away from the trapdoor.
Interesting week ahead.
Had to set the alarm for 4 am this morning to get the result. Great that we have now gone seven unbeaten. I recall I did say after the last defeat that if we could go the rest of the season unbeaten it would be a fantastic feat of achievement bearing in mind the state of the treatment room.
Shame I missed the pre-match social in the Nav, but I’m sure the lads made sure that Jarkko had a warm Boro weloome, thanks to my good mate Pete from Halifax. UTB
Yup – can see all of that. But, not a great advert, even with the punch-up, a few days after all the attempts to hype up the season card sales! But even that’s Typical Boro, though.
I see Gibbo’s stopped hiding behind Mogga – now he’s pressed Neil Bausor into service.
There were some consolations though – in addition to the scrap and the point – McDonald scoring again and a second ‘assist’ in two games for Parmo Tarmo.
Glad the Beano seems to have gone down as well as the beer at The Navi!
**AV writes: Eric interviewed Gibbo before the match about the trials and tribulation sof the last 12/18 months. Probably in the paper Monday/Tuesday.
And another thing……
In midweek, I defended Mogga’s comments about ‘starting slowly’ as having a meaning that might have been somewhat ‘lost in translation’.
Fourth game in a row we’ve conceded first. I think I need to think it out again!???
Can’t win em all Vic but good to see such (literally) fighting spirit from the team. The attitude of the team is spot on. On recent showings,and with a bit of fine tuning,I think we’ll be there or there abouts next season.Love the post fight analysis as well.
Too many injuries ,too many half fit players on the pitch and the absence of both Emnes and Lita left us with so few options up front.
In all the circumstances a battling draw was fair enough.To anybody criticising the manager he had very few options when it came to team selection. Thomson was “blowing” after 25 minutes and there was a lack of mobility across the midfield.
It actually dawned on me yesterday that we have too many left footed players at the club particularly in the midfield.Taylor, Arca, Robson, Thomson, Halliday and Cameron Park. A couple of these out and balancing up with a couple of right sided players including a genuine right winger would help.
I for one look forward to reading what Gibbo has had to say. It’s not before time.
AV –
Glad we’ll hear something from Gibbo.
Great to hear the club treated Jarkko and Mrs. J. so well – excellent!
Don’t know why the fans are getting excited about next season. If mowbray has to sell the likes of Williams, Steele etc the club will indoubtedly be relegated
I suppose earlier it should have been “noms de plume” not nom de plumes….
I saw the signed Boro shirt when Jarkko brought it out of its bag in the Navi after the match. He seemed very chuffed with it. It is destined for a picture frame on the wall. Well done, for once, Boro.
And while Paul Bell speculates, at 1.45pm, that “if Mowbray has to sell the likes of Wiliams, Steele etc the club will undoubtedly be relegated”, the reality is that the club needs to get rid of the higher wages earners not the home grown talent. The wages of Boyd (if he returns – *shudder*), Emnes, McDonald, Thompson, Lita, Arca and Robson (and I’m sure I will have missed one or two other “big earners”) are far more than this club could afford in the Championship.
If, say, Boyd had put in 25 goals and Lita say 18 goals and therefore we were in with a shout of promotion this season, it might have been a different situation. If you pay big wages, you expect a big contribution from the players concerned.
The trajectory, despite a bit of a hic-cup yesterday, is still upwards though. And if Paul Bell meant in his post that Rhys Williams could be a major influence in the team next year, I agree. Let’s wrap him in cotton wool for a while yet, as it is easy to forget just how long he has been out of action in his brief career so far.
A tricky fixture for me this one, with my wife coming from Barnsley and living there. We were invited to Redcar for lunch with friends whom I sit next to at the match so apologies for missing the ‘do’ at the Navigation.
It was as much a day for dining out as attending the match, because afterwards I promised my wife a meal at the Tontine. No suprise then to see Hignett and Agnew stuffing themselves (like me) in there.
A draw was the best diplomatic outcome as she said for both her teams who each received a point. Difficult to argue against that,though the only energy we showed was our own version of a scene of a bar room brawl from an old western which looked more ludicrous than violent.
McShane was playing his last loan match for Barnsley so an early holiday for him.
As for us, we struggled all match to get going; slow, heavy legged but even when we are losing you now expect an equaliser to arrive and it did despite McDonald almost running out of patience with those around him to supply him with a decent pass.
Irrespective of his faults we are a poorer team without Arca in the middle, we always appear stilted, disjointed and lack the fluency of movement than when he is making those short and angled passes. He will probably go in the summer and we shall miss him.
Oh how I miss the FUN any way coming back to Yarm soon .The Boro Supporter in Spain will be back on the terraces will his mates
So I started watching Boro in Big Jacks promotion season and I have got the feeling that I will be watching a promotion season next year under Big Moga. Keep up the good work folks.
Jeff
You have to love Boro fans..
gt said:
“A Strachan performance. If Mogga does it again I for one am OUT.”
One poor performance in a while and you are out? Maybe the Harlem Globe Trotters is a better team for you? Even Arsenal have off days!
paulbell said:
“Don’t know why the fans are getting excited about next season. If mowbray has to sell the likes of Williams, Steele etc the club will indoubtedly be relegated.”
Shame and scorn should be poured on any sense of hope and optimism at the first possible sign of improvement. Look on the bright side we could always resign Lee Dong Gook and pair him with Alves!
Best to kick the team before they rise just in case they do stumble so that we can say I told you so ages ago!
Lets restart “the cup has never been half full anyway” arguement!!
COB!
It was a very Strachan team this weekend wasn’t it – McManus, Robson, Thomson, McDonald, Halliday, then Flood and Kink later.
How were they? Was it this fact that made the performance/game so poor, or is that a harsh assessment?? I guess we were missing all of our pacey or flare players yesterday for a variety of reasons
Thank God the club had the common decency to roll out the red carpet for Jarkko & Mrs Jarkko (& Pete! 😉 ).
Thank God, too, that, irrespective of how late they left it, the team eventually “did the biz” on the pitch & a least salvaged a draw! 🙂
I agree with all the comments above about the Beano. It was a real pleasure to meet fellow-bloggers, the Finnish fan-club, and of course, you yourself, AV.
I also agree with all the comments about the game, which was dreadful from a Boro perspective. Jarkko, you have to believe that Boro can and do pass the ball better than this! I lost count of the number of times we gave the ball away sloppily. A very tired performance.
One further thing about our lucky break:- from the North Stand it looked very much as though Willo (who gave us some much-needed energy, by the way) handled the ball in the build up, and got away with it.
Did bloggers sitting in other parts get the same view? Not that I’m bothered – the ref and lino said play on and in my paper this morning (as Ian Gill says), it said
1-1.
Seven games unbeaten is fantastic! Let’s hope we can keep it going at Burnley on Tuesday. Can’t get there, unfortunately, but I’ll be at Hull on Saturday.
It was clear from shape, the selection and lack of pace at which we played most of the game that several bars of wickedly planted Strachanonite must have been dug up by the goundsmen ealier in the week.
Over the 95 mins, far too many of crockcliff zombies recently raised from the treatment table surfaced to play.
Even when fit would we ever want to play Kevin Thomson, and Robson at the same time? This is still very much “his” ( the one who can not be named) team and as such will always revert back to type.
As an Eastender I alas was not even cheered up by the brawl, but can confirm that it did appear that Flood used his arm as an assist to the Boro equaliser.
When the Tykes pressed the self destruct button at least my MoM McDonald was right time, right place and executed well.
The dancing girls before the game showed that Teesside does have talent and the penalty shoot out at half time was exciting.
Typical Boro !
I see that Stricken has admitted to ‘mistakes’ that led to the debacle of his period at Boro on ‘Goals on Sunday’.
Perhaps wisely, and even under some gentle pressure from the presenters he declined to go into details.
Credit to him for that admission – and for not taking any compo, of course.
Maybe we’ll hear more from Gibbo – unless they’ve agreed to both keep their counsel.
It would be good not to have another repeat of ‘his’ team at Turf Moor tomorrow.
I sit near-ish to the Flood incident near the north-east corner and it looked like an excellent bit of chest control to me.
Flood was probably the highlight of the day. I thought he looked very bright when he came on.
Thomson was rusty to say the least, I’m not really prepared to judge him til next season, if he is still here. Mogga obviously rates him. He certainly loves that ball out to McMahon.
I have to say I’m not at all convinced with Andrew Davies, yes he gets in some excellent blocks, but I worry everytime he gets on the ball and his positional sense isn’t always great. I’d rather have Bates or Williams alongside him on Tuesday night.
Finally, Smallwood impressed again when he came on, would like to see him get some more time on the pitch before the end of the season.
‘Smells like a summer break!’ That’s my thoughts on the description of the game up to the 70 min point.
I sense, against the advertised wishes of Mogga the Great to win every match till the end of the season, that the boots on turf are already in Spain or the Carrib. “Job done boss, we’re mathematically safe ain’t we!”
Well that maybe the case but others around haven’t quite got out the sunscreen and bathing towels yet.
Still, a little rucking seemed to bring back a touch of fighting spirit and you have game on. It occurs to me that a sharp unethical manager would suggest to his central defender that at some point in the first twenty minutes he should poke the most volatile opponent firmly in the eye for all but the cameras to see.
That should get the blood rising and any idea of sunshine and sangria out of the system. Still as I say that would be unethical wouldn’t it?
As for the resplendent forthcoming announcement from SG, I hope he goes in for a little fan power and opens up the club to a small but highly symbolic financial contribution from the fans.
My analysis is if you ain’t got a big sack of cash (by way of an American, Russian or Arab) then forget about any sustained success. If that is so then you’ll always be a small community club.
So why not go for it big time. Ease the fans in nice and gently and really make it an FC of the people for the people. Time will tell!
UTB
Oh, and it was a great run by Rhys Williams at the end – he really does seem to ghost past players effortlessly at times, and I don’t really blame him for having a go – but he really should have laid it off to the unmarked Smallwood on his right.
(Bates or Williams alongside McManus on Tuesday night of course)
Hello all bloggers here. It was fabulous to meet you all at Navii.
I will keep this short as a don’t have a pc with me and the connection are bad while travelling. My first post got lost already. I hang on to my new mobile but perhaps I cannot use it.
So a very big thank you all I met at the Navi. It is something money cannot buy. It was strange to meet people you know but had never met face to face. Like meeting a pen friend after all those years.
Special thanks to AV for the idea of a meeting, Dormo for the Beano magazine, Halifaxp for the arrangements and finally Boro for offering me free tickets and a tour on the ground. Did you see me, my wife and Halifaxp on pitch before the match?
Seondly the club gave me a sogned shirt to make my day perfect. I am celebrating my half centenary today so it was a nice birthday precent by the club.
So definitely one of the greatest days of my life. And it will continue at Burnley on Tuesday. See you then (at least Halifaxp before the match). I love you all, Boro and Mogga!
Up the Boro!
I suppose you can label players as Strachan’s players and Gate’s players for that matter. The formers were assembled at 70% of Alves fee, for all their faults and some failures they have been better value than Aliadiere, Caleb Folan, Alves, Mido, Dong Gook Lee etc.
But so many of our squad have had injury riven seasons that you cannot pass definitive judgements on a lot of them as players.
Thommo was cast as a wimp by some just because he complained about playing with a broken leg. Contrast that to Digard who seems fit to play once he gets back to France
What we need is for Mogga to get a balanced, settled squad together ready for next season. Who will still be here is a debate for a monster blog but the first things on the agenda are tomorrow night’s game at Burnley and Saturdays trip to Hull.
Two very tricky matches against times battling to get into the play-offs and games I will be grateful for any sort of points from. I invoke the god of ‘points from unexpected source’. Now how do I trademark this? Sir Henry, help!
Not the best we have seen for a while.
But if we can play like that and still get something all well and good.
Nice to hear what SG said. Good enough for me.
I had a free afternoon and the wife was at work so I went to my second match this season. My first was the opening day debacle when I walked out muttering “never again” once more.
Of the two games I much preferred the second and I might come back in the future to see how Mogga continues to make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.
Boro Phil –
On The Andrew Davies thing, I think hes maybe trying too much to impress. He has to relax . I would hate to play next to McManus. Watch him closely, its very easy to pull him out of position and hes always committing himself. His only asset is he can head the ball.
Boro Doug –
We had over 21000 at the first home game. Once a lot of them had seen what the previous manager had brought in, they are now out. My point being the team selected against Barnsley?
Well… back home at last, and it was a long way to come for a performance like that, but was more than made up by meeting Jarkko and his lovely wife, Halifax, Dormo, Clive etc etc and talking all things Boro with a load of like minded, and knowledgeable people.
I would have loved to have stayed longer, but had my own little group to look after… who at least saw, and celebrated with wild abandon, a Boro goal, and the excitement of the ‘run of Rhys’ that was worth the money on its own…wish he’d scored though…
And last but not least, to meet the legendary AV, who makes the bits in between the games at least bearable, was the icing on a very enjoyable ‘Boro day out.’
Mogga said it all after the match really. Some people next to me in the north stand were getting on McDonald’s back, madness really, he was on his own all match and it was only when Kink came on did he see any real service.
Then after the match I spoke to Rhys Williams [ while he was signing kids shirts] and another fan made a complaint to him about McDonald being poor and Rhys said ‘ he scored the equaliser didnt he?’
I cant believe that people are getting on McDonalds back . He worked his socks off his touch is great and if we had Arca on also then he may have been able to link up better and maybe opened the very physical Barnsley up a bit more.
MacDonald was MOM for me and I know its expensive to get in to the game but sometimes you just have to get behind the team.
Too many moaners who dont understand that we have a lot of games in a short space of time and the best 11 isnt gonna be on the pitch 90 mins every match due to fatigue or injury.
As it was I really enjoyed the match due to the second half even though the first half was slow.
Get behind the team you moaners as the vibe you create can unsettle some of the younger squad members!
Great to see Jarkko treated so well by the club. Well done MFC and Halifaxp.
Two tough games coming up we might have to rely on points from unexpected sources ©, time will tell.