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TOBY HIGGINS - THE ROCKLIFFE FILES
MAC-NIFICENT 19-4-06
Did anyone else watch Alan Pardew shuffle uncomfortably in front of the camera after his side crumbled at the Riverside on Sunday afternoon? The Hammers boss tried desperately to convince himself more than anyone that we, the Boro, are "without a shadow of a doubt the favourites for the F.A. Cup semi-final next Sunday. Let the mind games begin.
Pardew has clearly done his homework. As 'favourites' this season we have succumbed to defeats against sides like Sunderland, Villa and Wigan, but as 'underdogs', we have beaten Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea. Not a bad idea then to label us as the undisputed front-runners to make it to Cardiff.
Or maybe he's just a very honest and therefore very worried man? After watching a weakened Boro side - a side that from now until the end of the season will probably become known as our weekend team (Pour Vous, JB) - give his 'first team' more than a run for their money, so he should be worried.
Before moving away from the last game against the West Ham towards the next, it's only fair to give credit to the players who won't be stealing the headlines in the middle of May. Matthew Bates was fantastic at right back, despite being left constantly exposed by last week's hero, the wandering Massimo Maccarone. And despite looking nervy in the opening fifteen minutes, David Wheather played superbly to keep a clean sheet on his first start. Two other names stood out, though.
Doriva and in particular, Ray 'Charlie Dimmock' Parlour, easily got the better of Reo-Coker and Mullins in the midfield battle, and despite tiring in the last ten minutes, both were fantastic on Sunday. As a big Parlour fan, I'm just sorry that we haven't seen too much of him during his time at Boro.
Some players who aren't involved in the 'big games' would simply stroll around the pitch uninterested in what was a 'second team' outing, especially if they see players around them who are half their age. But Parlour threw himself into every tackle, as he has done throughout his career, and it might be harder than some think to replace squad players like 'Steady away Ray' and Doriva, especially if we are going to need a squad to play sixty-plus matches a season, every season.
It's true, that by the time our season finishes we will have played a minimum of sixty-four games, but the more likely figure will be sxity-six. Because of the two cup finals. That's a staggering figure, and it's easy to see why our league campaign has been affected when compared to teams like Tottenham, who are in pursuit of a Champions League place, but who have only played thrity-seven games so far this season.
Still, wouldn't you rather have a nice trophy to put in the cabinet rather than (as happened to Everton and will probably happen to Spurs) get knocked out in the qualifying rounds of the Champions League?
Anyway, back to what I wanted to bore you with. Let me see, what was it again? Something to do with two semi-finals in a week, I think.
First of all, we go Romania on Thursday night. A huge game, because as long as we don't concede more than two, and more importantly, that we score an away goal, then we should make it to the final. Having gone past Stuttgart and Roma on away goals, and having had to score four at home to beat Basle because we didn't get an away goal in Switzerland demonstrates how important they are, especially to us.
As mentioned earlier, West Ham will be our next victim in Sunday's semi. If we hit anywhere near top gear then a place in that final will be assured too, although anything can and usually does happen in the F.A. Cup. Don't however expect drama and goals galore, despite it being our trademark so far this season. Single game semi-finals tend to be very nervy events, with neither side wanting to over commit with a place in the final at risk, so us to nick it one or two nil would be my guess.
The other big story surrounding the club at the moment is of course regarding Steve McClaren, who is, if the press are to be believed, the New England manager. The F.A. have had a hard decision made easy by the fact that the new manager almost certainly had to be English, and that the good form of Charlton (Curbishley), Manchester City (Pearce), and Bolton (Flintsone) has gone AWOL, with Boro stealing all the headlines. The fact that in recent weeks we have beaten each of those three teams has also been noted, I'm sure.
Everyone has their opinion of McClaren, and I'm no different. I can say with a huge degree of confidence that I could probably write a book on Steve McClaren Middlesbrough Manager, never mind just an article. In fact, I've already begun to plan it.
It'll be called 'Mac-nificent' and will features chapters entitled, 'substitutions', 'tactics', 'cup finals' and 'ginger chest wigs' to name a few, but more on that another time.
Assuming McClaren does leave us, my main worry is his replacement. When Bryan Robson left, it was crucial Lord Gibson got it right, and five years down the line, I'm sure most of us can agree McClaren has been good for the club. Now the appointment of his successor has got to be right.
But for the moment, we have more immediate things to worry about than our manager for next season. The fifty-seven games we've played so far this season will all go to waste if we don't win at least one of our semi-finals this coming week. This doesn't happen to us very often and we've got to seize this moment to make real history.
Here we go Boro. Let's do it. Let's make sure the 2005/06 season is always remembered for being. Mac-nificent.
Same time next week.UP THE BORO!!
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