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.