Great Expectations

By Guy Bailey

Andy Warhol said that everybody would be famous for 15 minutes. Well, the Boro achieved the footballing equivalent on Saturday when we hit the top of the Championship for that long until Juskiewitz grabbed a spawny equalizer for the Sky Blues.

Before reflecting more on Saturday and the suspiciously promising start to the season, let us consider how the mantle of Coventry has fallen so far, so fast. I’m 30-somehow, and Coventry were always a perennial mid-table First Division side, also starring in the best FA Cup Final of the past 30 years for my money. Then one day, or season, things don’t go so well and bang – your down amongst the dead men. Now, I guess for every football fan coming of age in the past decade, they are the perennial mid-table Championship side. See how easy it can happen? Further proof, if any were needed, that we need to get out of this league ASAP. It already has one Barnsley – it doesn’t need another.

Project Emnes, who has turned from Mission Impossible into the Manhattan Project in 2011, opened the scoring and although we had chances to bury the game, the lack of a recognized striker caught us out. Not to mention the team looking a little leggy in the second period – youthful enthusiasm can only take you so far before physical and mental fatigue catches up with you – so it was inevitable that we would get caught out sometime. We could have even snatched a win at the death when Wayne Harouney (copyright the author) hit the bar when ironically a smaller man might have got the angle necessary to stick it in. 1-1 then, although as any Boro history buff would tell you, a point at home to Coventry is as nailed on as a defeat at St James whenever the fixtures cross.

First international break of the season then and am amazed yet delighted to find that we, along with Brighton, hold the only unbeaten records in the Championship. Yes, we could have had a couple more points and goals but every football club from the Teesborough to the Champions League can say the same. We’ve now amassed as many points as it took until October to get last year so let’s look forward to a break, some rest and the return of Kevin Thomson when we travel across the pennines to face those cotton’ pickin’ Clarets in a fortnight.

UTB Y’all.

Category: Middlesbrough Team News