FA Cup Fourth Round - 26 January 2013

MIDDLESBROUGH V ALDERSHOT TOWN

Proper fourth round weather at the Riverside, snow on the ground but bright enough to maintain the rain-free cup run for another week. Championship Middlesbrough are at home again, this time against League 2 Aldershot Town. The attendance looks lower than for the Hastings game despite the repeated £10 entry.

Boro are clear favourites but are in their customary January slump, so the Shots do have a shot at an upset. They are in all white with the home side in their standard red shirts with white chest bar.

It’s a subdued start with Aldershot sitting back as Boro settle in to their passing game using Parnaby and Reach as probing wing backs. This often involves shunting the ball across the back line, and when one pass goes astray Aldershot’s Hylton pinches the ball, inducing a rash challenge from Parnaby on the edge of the Boro box. Rose hits the free kick sweetly but it clears the cross bar by inches with goal keeper Steele in attendance.

The first half settles into a pattern of Boro possession and territory punctuated by occasional strikes on goal; Zemmama and Reach look most likely to create openings and centre forward Jutkiewicz is proving a handful for the Aldershot centre halves. When strikes on goal do emerge Shots’ keeper Young is up to them. A Parnaby shot from the edge of the box is palmed away past the post and a Bailey header is saved low down on the goal line.

Aldershot’s excursions into the Middlesbrough half are infrequent but effective. The long ball out to the left wing is won every time by the tall Vincenti and the busy Hylton looks to get onto the flick on. They are also helped by the home team’s tendency to give the ball away deep in their own half. This leads to another foul on Hylton on the edge of the Boro box but the free kick this time smacks into the defensive wall. Their next half chance comes when Vincenti again wins a header, this time in front of goal but before his colleagues can react, Steele grabs the loose ball.

So it remains 0-0 at half time and Boro come out with a revised 4-4-2 formation that takes a tight grip on the game. Aldershot surrender possession and territory but pack the final third giving Boro no way through.

On the hour Boro boss Mowbray makes changes, replacing the ineffective Emnes with Ledesma and bringing the adventurous Halliday on for Smallwood. It is Ledesma who has immediate impact when his angled run is found by a long ball from Hines; he controls the pass well but his shot lacks power and is gathered by Young. As part of the Boro reshuffle Williams is pushed forward and he fires a good shot just wide.

A cheekier effort comes from centre half Bikey who, spotting Young well off his line drives a free kick from his own half over the retreating keeper but also a couple of yards over the bar. A free kick from much closer is awarded when Zemmama is fouled. He races to claim the ball to take the kick and an undignified dispute ensues with Ledesma who also wants a crack. Skipper Williams has to adjudicate, awards it to Ledesma whose shot is on target but dealt with by Young.

The Boro pressure continues and a long diagonal cross from Reach finds two attackers and two defenders competing at the far post. Jutkiewicz jumps highest and somehow gets the back of his head to the ball in such a way to direct it into the corner of the net. With a 1-0 lead and seven minutes left relief settles around the Riverside.

However Aldershot now have nothing to protect so for the first time turn their efforts to all-out attack. This means when Boro again give up possession in their own half Aldershot have the bodies up there to take advantage. Rose makes ground and crosses to Hylton in the box. His first touch is sublime and his second places the ball wide of Steele and into the corner of the net to make it 1-1. Such composure illustrates why he is the leading scorer in this year’s competition, and it looks like he may have earned an opportunity to try for more in a replay.

The two minutes remaining are extended by a further six. This is mainly due to the need to replace an injured assistant referee – gone are the days of dragging a spectating off duty referee from the crowd and giving him a flag, instead the fourth official has to get miked up and sent out.

Towards the end of the added time, desperate Boro pump the ball forward and once more Jutkiewicz battles, as he has all game, with Bradley. This time he leaves him on the floor and chases the ball wide before rolling it past the outstretched arm of Young, onto the far post, and over the line for the latest of late winners.

Not a great game but an exciting finish. The travelling Aldershot fans enjoyed holding their own for much of the game, and had a few minutes of ecstasy following the equaliser, before coming down to earth with a bump. The Middlesbrough crowd are more relieved than happy, but they will hope for another home draw and continuation of one of their longer FA cup runs.

FA Cup Third Round - 5 January 2013

MIDDLESBROUGH V HASTINGS UNITED

Third round day, and although the weather is unseasonably mild the match is pure FA Cup with Championship Middlesbrough hosting Hastings United from the five steps lower Isthmian League. Hastings took Harrogate back to Sussex in round 2 and eventually won on penalties to earn this return to the North East.

Despite the cut price £10 entry the Boro fans have not responded in numbers but the away section is filling up well. It’s not just some fans missing for Middlesbrough as several first teamers are on the injured list. This will put a few youngsters on their bench, explaining why it looked like a couple of ball boys had infiltrated their warm-up routines. Middlesbrough are in traditional red with the white chest bar; Hastings have lost the claret since the last round and so are in light blue shirts and white shorts.

From the kick off Boro take the initiative and in their patient passing style probe at Hastings without any immediate result. After 15 minutes of being restricted to long range shots they do find centre forward Miller in a crowded Hastings penalty area. In manoeuvring to find space to shoot he is tripped by Crelin and a penalty is awarded. Miller grabs the ball but has to wait for a while as Hastings engage the referee in a protracted debate. When he is allowed to take the kick it resembles a weak back pass that O’Brien fields easily.

Hastings’ reprieve is temporary as five minutes later Zemmama, who has already caught the eye in Boro’s midfield, uses space on the edge of the box to curl a precise shot over O’Brien into the far corner of the net. Playing three at the back Boro continue to dominate without adding to the score. Reach works well down the left, once dribbling far into the penalty area before having his close range shot saved; Zemmama tries to repeat his goal but this time gives his attempt too much loft; Miller is put clear through by Parnaby but lacks the pace to capitalise and is left in a heap as two defenders and the keeper snuff him out.

It is only in the final ten minutes of the half that Hastings get close to the Middlesbrough goal. Camara and Goldberg finally get some space from Bailey, Williams and Halliday and win a couple of corners and a free kick. From the latter the ball falls to Crelin but his shot is blocked. Later a cross from Camara creates difficulty and when the ball is deflected goalwards Steele shows agility in palming it to safety.

So at half time it is still 1-0 and not comfortable enough for Boro to sit back on. Hastings are keeping Camara up and Goldberg in support. When their big defenders Ray and Jirbandey come up for corners Boro look a bit underheight.

A minute into the restart it is Middlesbrough who get a corner. It is hit low to the near post where Miller’s attempted back heel flick misses entirely but serves as an effective dummy allowing Halliday to sweep the ball into the roof of the net from a few yards out. A few moments later he has a chance to score again but O’Brien saves with his feet.

Boro are a little more relaxed now and chances come and go. Zemmama has another attempt saved, and young Jordan Jones making his debut from the bench has a good opportunity blocked. But it’s not all one way; Hastings put together a few moves and one culminates in a fine shot from Carey that has Steele at full stretch to tip round the post.

Into the last quarter of the game Zemmama tries his luck again, and fortune favours him as his shot is deflected past a helpless O’Brien for his second and Boro’s third goal. However before the Boro fans can get used to the three goal lead their defence backs off Goldberg, giving him much room thirty yards from goal, and he lashes a fierce shot over Steele and into the net. The thousand Hastings fans greet this defiant gesture with wild cheering and even the Boro fans give grudging applause.

Despite the setback Middlesbrough keep their grip on the game and it is them who, with five minutes to go, finish off the scoring. Ishmael Millar has been soldiering on, given a tough day by the no-nonsense performance of Hastings player-manager centre-half Sean Ray. He missed a penalty, fluffed his clear run on goal, and inadvertently dummied his backheel to set up Halliday’s goal; but finally he finds himself facing goal with the ball on his favoured left foot. With supreme confidence he strokes it into the corner of the net from the edge of the box (something he failed to do earlier from 12 yards) to make it 4-1.

At the final whistle it is job done for Middlesbrough; a banana skin avoided, no top billing on the ITV highlights programme, and through their first FA Cup tie of the season. For Hastings, the ninth game of their cup run is their last but they leave with heads held high. While their fans set off for a 300 mile return south the team head in the opposite direction for a deserved night out on Newcastle Quayside.