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BORO v EVERTON - BRIGGSY'S ANALYSIS
We made wholesale changes from the excellent game in midweek against
Steaua -
nine in total.
Despite that we still put a team out with
Premiership
experience that managed to match Everton throughout and we were unlucky be on
the
receiving end of a narrow defeat.
Neither team really had anything left to play for in the league but the
game
was played in a spirited and competitive fashion. The game was minutes old
when
Raggy Ray Parlour volleyed narrowly over.
We had lengthy possession but failed to create any clear cut chances. The same was true
for Everton. Our best chance of the half came fifteen minutes from the
break. Yakubu cut in from the left and hit a fierce shot that narrowly
went
wide.
Everton had their best chance of the half five minutes later. Beattie
took a
thirty yard free kick that brought an excellent save from Brad Jones. A
typical
Boro break away saw a four-on-one situation down the other end but
Yakubu's
final ball was poor.
Everton started the second half brighter but Beattie could not
direct his twenty-five yard shot on target. With sixty four minutes gone Yakubu
saw
his shot deflect off David Wier and go narrowly wide. Minutes later Jones
was on
hand again to keep us in the game. A twenty yard free kick from James McFadden brought an excellent one handed save from the stand-in Boro
keeper
Brad Jones.
On seventy minutes Davies made a breakaway on the right, going past
Morrison
and Cattermole, but his final shot left very little to be desired. Both
teams
then had chances but just couldn't draw a save from either keeper.
Five minutes from time Yakubu showed excellent trickery in the box to
carve
himself an opening, but his left footed shot again went agonisingly
wide.
The Yak was left laying on the floor cursing his luck, he was clearly
gutted
not to score. He is going through a baron spell at the moment and
is in
desperate need of a goal. Head up, it will come.
The breakthrough came in the ninetieth minute but this time it wasn't from
Boro.
Osman lofted a long ball downfield that released McFadden, who was hotly
perused by Wheater and Ugo. Brad Jones came racing off his line and
McFadden
tested his luck with a lob shot which he saw ruffle the back of the
net.
It was a cruel blow but I don't think many Boro fans were too
disappointed, what
with Thursday heroics still playing on their minds. We finished the game
with
eight academy players and nine Englishman, that a testament to youth
policy
adopted by Steve McClaren and the excellent work of David Parnaby. It
bodes
well for the future of club.
No doubt we'll see more from what our youth players have to offer
between
now and the end of the season. We have three games left before the UEFA Cup
final and this gives McClaren an excellent opportunity to field the youth
players.
Roll on Monday.
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