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A YEAR OF TRANSITION - 'IT AIN'T' 1-8-07
Toby Higgins
As I sat listening to the Three Legends football phone-in on the way to Darlington's TFM Arena for Boro's pre-season game there, I was aghast to here Bernie Slaven telling one caller that he was more than a little concerned about the forthcoming season, due to reservations he held regarding Boro's firepower in attack. Before proceeding to tell the caller that, "the hardest thing to do in football is score a goal".
Clearly, he's never tried to teach Yakubu how to head a ball in a specific direction, or tried keeping Jonathan Woodgate injury free for longer than a month. Though Slaven might have had a point in suggesting scoring is now more difficult than ever. Surviving in England's top flight division is by far the most difficult, and a pressing matter for every manager outside of the top four. Or, if you're a London based Spurs supporting sports writer, the top five.
On the contrary, keeping goals out is the key to survival. Nothing more than a brief glance in the direction of Manchester City, who failed to score once at home between the turn of the year and the end of the season, yet survived with a degree of ease thanks to a solid backline of defenders. City scored only twenty nine goals all season, as many as 20th placed Watford, and yet finished six places higher and fifteen goals better off.
To this end, Boro shouldn't struggle a great deal this season. With Gareth Southgate and Colin Cooper, themselves former masters at the art of defending, of course, at the helm, as well as England and German internationals in Woodgate and Robert Huth respectively, we're in a much better position to keep goals out than many teams who will expect to finish around us next May. Getting, and then keeping, Woodgate and Huth, who are both set to miss the start of the season through injury, fit, is the trick.
Without any major international football tournament during June, this summer has proved to be somewhat of a chore. Quieter times, though, have provided an opportunity to reflect, and it was during said reflection that it struck me how much has changed at Middlesbrough Football Club during that last twelve months.
A year ago, Steve Gibson, much to the disappointment of many-a Boro fan, unveiled Southgate as Steve McClaren's replacement as the clubs new leader, and while Gibson spoke highly, and at length, about Southgate's impressive array of talents, the notion underpinning the whole decision to 'promote from within' appeared to be that of consistency.
A marked contradiction, one might say, from the views expressed by Gibson just a few weeks ago, when he explained how he sought spectacular signings to join Tuncay Sanli and Jeremie Aliadiere, in order to alter the persona and style of the side, and Southgate himself confessed the chairman has shown a desire for change.
Much has changed throughout the whole structure of the club during the past year. The backroom staff have been greatly reshuffled, most notably, the promotion of Colin Cooper to a level verging on assistant manager, and the release of Steve Round, both of which caused a noticeable, if not remarkable, change in fortunes on the pitch. Chief Scout Don Makay has also been moved on, and with the mention of names like 'Maccarone' and 'Euell, it's easy to see why.
Changes in personnel within the playing staff, as well as, for this season, it would appear, a change in the entire style and shape of the team, suggests that consistency hasn't worked as well as Gibson would have hoped. In fact, it's probably failed.
But that's not to say appointing Southgate was a mistake. He has coped admirably, given the early problems with his Pro-license, to build a team that was more than capable of surviving in the toughest league in the world, and has shown a rapid ability to learn, particularly from mistakes. And, as mentioned, the change from a rigid 4-4-2 to a more vibrant 4-3-3 will allow Southgate to create a team in his own image, rather bossing than a side with a more than a scattering of McClaren leftovers, and trademarks.
Meanwhile, Gibson himself, as ever, deserves hefty praise. While I'm not naïve enough to believe, even for a moment, that his announcement regarding 'spectacular signings' had nothing to do with the imminent distribution of season ticket renewal application forms, lesser men would have stuck to their pledge for consistency, and wouldn't have allowed the club to embark on a total make-over, which many fans believed a necessity after the UEFA Cup Final debacle.
The worry is though, that the damage has already been done. With Boro being reported as the only side in the entire division to have sold fewer season tickets than less season, it might be the case that Boro's wayward form during the last 12 months, coupled with what some fans might see as a visible lack of direction are causing fans to switch off from the Boro, and stay away from games.
Of course, match day price inflation, the increased 'us and them' strain placed on the relationship between fans and players, and the ever rising number of games shown on various television channels, both legally and illegally during the season are factors, though, if it transpires that we are indeed the only side to have sold fewer tickets than last year, then the problem is much more localised than is being acknowledged.
Football fans of the North East are typically a loyal and passionate bunch, who like their football the same way they like their alcohol. It needs to be plentiful, free-flowing and, most importantly, it needs to make them feel good about themselves. And once the feel good factor, which frankly, has been lacking since Southgate's appointment, returns, so will fans.
It won't happen overnight, but to the same end, it won't take many decent displays for the fans to flock back - even if it is initially on a match-to-match basis. It's up to everyone at MFC to strive to ensure it happens, though the upcoming campaign shouldn't be dubbed one 'of transition'. Gibson and Southgate have been ironing out the creases behind the scenes in the last twelve months; it's time to see some these changes take affect on the pitch.
Finally, congratulations to everyone who has taken up a writing position within ComeOnBoro.com towers for this season, and a special mention to our new editor, Peter Hillerby. Good luck to us all.
Same time next week.
UpTheBoro.
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A GUARANTEED PROFIT OF AT LEAST £41.00 ON THE FA CUP FINAL
Did you know that it is possible to win money on Saturday afternoon's FA Cup Final clash between Portsmouth and Cardiff, whatever the result?
The game kicks off at 3.00pm and we can guarantee you a profit of at least £41.00, whatever the result of the match. All you have to do is follow the simple instructions below and then sit back and enjoy the game. At full-time (ninety minutes), you will be at least £41.00 better off, whatever the result of the match.
We must point out that if you want to take this bet, you should do it now because if the odds change, then the figures here will be invalidated. If they have changed, let us know and we will rework the bet for you.
You can still do this if you have a Betfair account but your overall profit will be reduced by £25.00 as you won't receive the £25.00 cashback as an existing account holder.
If you are unsure about this bet, you are most welcome to call us on 01642 223229 and we will help you as much as we can.
We're going to lay out a total of £129.00 on the FA Cup Final and we will collect £175.00 if Cardiff win, £171.24 if Portsmouth win and £170.00 if it's a draw. That's a minimum profit of 31%, a much higher interest rate than you will get in any high street bank.
Here's how it's done. Just follow these simple instructions.
1. Open an account with Coral. It is really important that you enter the bonus code of CORALTD when prompted. This is to ensure that you receive your bonus.
Open an account with Betfair. It is really important that you enter the promotional code of BFB425 when prompted. This is to ensure that you receive your bonus.
Open an account with Extrabet
 .
This shouldn't take you any longer than a few minutes.
2. Make the following deposits into your new accounts.
Deposit £20.00 into your new Coral account.
Deposit £84.00 into your new Betfair account.
Deposit £25.00 into your Extrabet account.
3. Now make the following bets.
Place £20.00 on Cardiff at 5.00 (4/1) with Coral.
Coral will now add a £10.00 bonus to your account. Place this on Cardiff as well. You will now have £30.00 riding on Cardiff.
Back Portsmouth with £84.00 at 1.78 (4/5) (or higher if available) with Betfair.
Place £25.00 on the draw at 3.44 (12/5) with Extrabet .
Extrabet match your first bet up to £25 so you will now have £50.00 riding on the draw.
The £25.00 matched bet will not show in your account but you can read all about how it works on the Extrabet site. It's the purple box that says '£25 FREE BET FOR NEW CUSTOMERS' on the top right hand side. Click here to visit the Extrabet site.
If you are unsure about placing these bets, please feel free to mail us or call us on 01642 223229 and we will talk you through it, no problem at all. There is no such thing as a stupid question.
You have temporarily laid out a total of £129.00 on the FA Cup Final. I stress, temporarily... Now sit back, crack a beer open and enjoy the match.
4. Here's what happens at the end of the game. All winnings are paid out on the ninety minute result.
If Cardiff win, you collect £175.00. That's £150.00 from Coral plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
If Portsmouth win, you collect £171.24. That's £146.24 from Betfair plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
If it's a draw you collect £170.00. That's £145.00 from Extrabet plus a £25.00 cashback from Betfair.
5. This means that the worst case scenario on the Portsmouth v Cardiff match is a draw and you make £41.00 profit. However, if Cardiff win you make £46.00 and if Portsmouth win you make £42.24. That's a minimum profit of 31%, a much better rate of interest that you would get at any high street bank or building society.
6. It is absolutely vital that you click on the links on this page to open the accounts with the two bookies and enter the correct bonus codes or you may not qualify for the bonuses.
Also, before you place your bets, you should check that the odds haven't changed. If they have, let us know by mail or phone us on 01642 223229 and we will rework the bet for you.
Please feel free to contact us or phone us on 01642 223229 if you have any questions at all about this bet and we will help you as much as we can.
Please note that the bonuses are valid for new customers only so if you already have an account with one or more of the bookies we are using, you won't be able to do this. If that is the case, mail us or phone us on 01642 223229 and we'll create an alternative bet for you using different bookies.
This method of betting was used very successfully during the 2006 World Cup and you can read all about how it was done right here.
We guarantee this bet
It's understandable that some people will not believe that it is possible to do this. "What's the catch?" I hear you asking. My answer to that question is that we have been publishing arbitrage bets for four seasons now and literally hundreds of people have profited from following the advice on these pages.
Only twice has our refund guarantee been triggered and that was when we did all the figures wrong and sent refunds out to those who had followed our advice and made a small loss.
Our refund guarantee works like this. If this bet doesn't work like we say it will and you end up out of pocket, we will refund your losses. Simple as that.
That means that you simply cannot lose on this, whatever happens and even if we messed up the numbers.
The only stipulation here is that you must click on the links on this page to be eligible for the refund guarantee, not that you'll be needing to claim anyway. Just enjoy the profit and stay posted for many more of these throughout the season.
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