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AK GRAZ AWAY 17-2-05
Schwarzer, Reiziger, Riggott, Southgate, Queudrue, Morrison, Parlour, Zenden, Downing, Doriva, Hasselbaink
Nash, Graham, Cooper, Parnaby, Job, Nemeth, Davies
They started off with a waltz, pumping out over the loudspeakers. It was surreal. This was not football music. It was royal wedding music. Thank God Harry Haverton wasn't here. We'd never have heard the last of it...
Neither team managed to break the ice in the first ten minutes. A scrappy opening to the game failed to produce any noteworthy points. Graz tried to create a couple of openings but our defence looked strong tonight.
As the players became adjusted to the sub zero temperature, The Graz players started to take the game to Franck Queudrue, who reacted and gave away a free kick. The resulting shot was our wake up call and we were fortunate not to go behind from a well-aimed shot.
Roland Kollmann was the danger man for Graz but he had the wind taken out of his sails when the ref booked him on twenty-four minutes for hoofing the ball into the net after the offside whistle had gone.
On thirty three minutes, just one decent cross had been played in by either side - by Boro a minute earlier. A decent corner by Graz followed and Skippy made a tremendous save from the resulting shot. I hope his critics are keeping score.
Graz had a second and straight after a third corner but defence, Southgate in particular looking impressive, Reiziger accomplished, immediately snuffed out any danger.
Then Graz missed a sitter. The forward line collected the ball after working themselves into a great position and when they worked it out to Bleidelis, all he had to do was shoot straight to score. He shot at some acute angle after scuffing it and we had escaped.
And that was the last talking point of a poor quality first half that was about as enjoyable for the freezing fans as it was for the lukewarm teams.
Fan reaction: It's "Bloody Rubbish!" We want to get stuck in more and hassle them a bit more. And Jimmy seems to be scared of shooting... what's going on there? At least the defence looks solid. Come On Boro - we can beat this load of "Bloody Rubbish!"
Harry Haverton
THE SECOND HALF...
Boro came out late for the second half and attacked towards the partisan Teesside travelling army.
A fantastic move after six minutes had them in raptures as the ball was worked towards Bolo who reproduced a classic strike, straight from his Charlton/Lazio period. The Flying Dutchman beat one, then two, then switched the ball on to his right foot and it was one nil all the way. A fantastic strike...
I started to see the snow and ice melt in front of me and just as Julie Andrews was about to come skipping over the mountain singing 'The Hills Are Alive With The Sound Of Boro'.... Skippy's voice boomed cut the celebration short as he expertly collected and then screamed his abuse at the defence for allowing the Graz attacker to get his strike in.
The twenty fourth European tie in The Arnold Schwarzenegger Stadion was now alive and Boro's confidence was well up, having taken the lead. Stewey Downing perked up instantly and saw a speculative shot from distance go just wide.
The Croatian referee was threatening to disrupt the new found flow of the match. He had already booked Riggott for not taking a free kick quickly enough and Michael Reiziger for 'unsporting bahaviour'. And then Ray Parlour was pettily penalised twice.
With Boro's flow disrupted, Graz took advantage and from a quickly taken free kick, Mario Bazina sped into space and buried it. 1-1.
The goal celebration would have given Harry a heart attack. Music that has no place in any sports arena sounded out through the PA. It was straight from the sketches on The Benny Hill Show and I expected large bikinied can-canners to run out of the tunnel...
The outrageous music was the perfect motivation not to let Graz score again but we did better than that. Straight down the other end and from good work by Downing, Bolo was able to find our lone striker and a blistering Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink strike torpedoed into the net. A choir of one thousand Teesside Angels belted out the tune to Pigbag. There was none of that Benny Hill music to celebrate Boro retaking the lead and we were happy about that.
And then the match went strangely quiet for a short time. We could afford to take a 2-1 lead back to Teesside...
But we didn't. A free kick was awarded to Graz for obstruction and from a well-practised set piece, the equaliser flew into the net and that bloody awful music sounded again. Some Boro lads will surely get into trouble tonight for taking the piss out of it...
We were starting to think that we had another bent referee but he allayed our fears when he proved without doubt that he was merely incompetent. The goalscorer Roland Kollmann went down near the box and the referee's pointed finger gave the assumption that another free kick had been awarded. No. He pulled his red card out of his pocket and flashed it at Kollmann, who booted a TV camera as he left the field. Then his boots flew out of the tunnel. He didn't seem happy. Neither did the Graz fans who were now questioning whether the ref was bent?
INTO THE RED ZONE...
Referee Trivkovic was poor. He booked Jimmy for the merest of protestations at a throw in decision and during the rest of the match, was under pressure from the home supporters for the poor decision to send Kollmann off. He didn't deserve it.
The final moments produced a near scare as Schwarzer once agian rescued us with a near post save. Good one Skippy. What a keeper!
And so we have a two all draw to take home and I think that we will finish them off with ease next week. We have nothing to fear. Except dodgy referees. And Benny Hill music...
Fan reaction: That referee was absolutely "Bloody Rubbish!" Where did they get him from? "Bloody Rubbish!" It's a shame we didn't win tonight but I think we have a lot more in reserve. We'll have them at home next week and I can't wait.
Harry Haverton
Pictures by Andy Craig
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Myself, in Graz, joining in with the local hospitality...
And last night, I met the stadium owner...
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