Friday Night

What a gloomy week it’s been on the football front after Sunday’s debacle and the subsequent bad news about Bardsley and maybe Evans being out for the last three games. Tomorrow’s match is winnable and Boro have scored even less goals than us so far but they’re a funny mob and, unlike us, have shown in recent years that they can beat top four teams on a regular basis. McShane, Higgs and Harte are no doubt fine fellows but I’d much rather they weren’t in our defence and I dread to think what Alves and others might do to them tomorrow, if they’re playing. Like everyone else, I’m hoping that the fifty-fifty chance of Evans being fit goes our way as he’s an essential member of the team but it’d be good to see Wallace in there too. Of course we’re all hoping too for a major reaction after Sunday’s shite and a win tomorrow coupled with a defeat for Birmingham, Reading or Bolton would guarantee our safety. That’s a bit too much for me to hope for at present and no doubt it’ll be much messier than that with us drawing or losing and a great deal of attention being paid in the dying minutes to scores elsewhere. The match is just as important to Boro too and it’s going to be mighty competitive.

Pre-Match Fever

While despising all forms of superstition as being worthy only of simple-minded barbarians, I’ve naturally been on the look-out for omens and when I woke up during the night I noticed that my clock said 5.55. 5-0 would be ridiculous but maybe a 3-2 win was being suggested? It’ll do for now, though. At 2.30 I got the team news and Evans was out but Whitehead had gone to right back so there was no McShane while Chops was starting up front in a 4-4-2 formation. Both of these changes had been much in demand in recent SAFC correspondence and all things considered I don’t think we could’ve done any better.

The Match

I’d just got settled down on the settee with Radio Newcastle on the internet when we went 1-0 down in the fourth minute. My God, this was getting like Groundhog Day. Of all people it was Nos who messed up and Tuncay scored. Anyway, within a minute my very good friend Higginbotham had headed our equalizer and I was more than happy to consume an extra-large slab of humble pie. The crowd was roaring and it sounded like a great game. When things had calmed down after the frenetic opening five minutes the main items of interest were Chops apparently getting smacked in the head in an off-the-ball incident and returning to the pitch with a numberless shirt before Tuncay nearly made it 2-1 in the 27 th minute. Elsewhere Fulham and Newcastle were both 2-0 down while all other games of interest were goalless after half an hour. Next thing Forsell had put Birmingham 1-up against Liverpool and I was forced to scan the league table and remaining fixtures for all sides and compute all kinds of permutations, many of them unpleasant. Back in the game, Wheater, who had aroused the wrath of the crowd on a number of occasions already, was lucky to get away with just a yellow card after apparently raising his hands to Chopra. For good measure the numberless Chops was also booked. It sounded like it was all getting a bit tasty. Speaking of tasty, as two minutes of stoppage-time was posted Chops lammed in our second goal with his left foot when it sounded like he’d taken it too far. Come on, Chops son, only two and a half games in which to reach my predicted season-tally of ten. Half-time 2-1 and things were looking good.

No changes were made at half-time. There were chances for both sides in the early stages but elsewhere Bolton went 1-0 up at Spurs though this was quickly equalized. Around the hour-mark Birmingham went 2-up against Liverpool and Boro were awarded a dodgy free-kick that Alves put way too high. Immediately Leadbitter came on for Edwards and I’m always happy to see him on as what he lacks in skill he certainly makes up for in heart and he’s shown that he can score from a distance. Jones and Pogatetz had a serious clash of heads with blood and snot from here to Kingdom Come and there was a stoppage of five minutes or more. Anyway Kenwyne was soon back on all bandaged and dreadlocked up to tremendous applause. I just hoped it wouldn’t affect his somersaulting action. As if in sympathy Liverpool pulled a goal back. Soon afterwards Brad Jones made a great save to deny Chopra.

Around the 65 th minute I couldn’t sit down any more and began to pace around. Almost at once our defence stood still and allowed Alves to stroll through and score the equalizer. Another basic defensive error; always play to the whistle. It was anyone’s match at this stage (80 mins on the clock with plenty of stoppage-time too) but some fans were still leaving the ground early. Next thing Liverpool equalized at Birmingham and that was great news for us. In the 85 th minute Murphy replaced Chops and that showed we were still going for a winner. The predicted five minutes of stoppage-time duly arrived and there was a buzz from the crowd. Almost at once we got a corner and Murphy headed our third. Boro battled to the whistle and the noise coming out of my computer was deafening but after a loud roar, which couldn’t have been an equalizer surely? It was all over. News soon came through that Birmingham and Liverpool had drawn and we were safe. See you at Bolton next week.

ALS Books click here