Match Report: Sweet Tees wins are made of this, R.I.P. to Liam's baby

[Olé]

In unthinkable circumstances after their poor run of form and with under pressure manager Liam Manning on leave after the devastating loss of his new born son, City simply went to the archives and pressed play on their familiar Riverside greatest hits: clinical in the first half to roar well in front against Middlesbrough and well organised without the ball to once again frustrate their purposeful hosts.

Victories on Teeside always owe much to an additional much needed quality in front of goal and wingers Anis Mehmeti and man of the match Hirakawa Yu both showed calm and composure to put City well ahead by the break. You expect a home onslaught but your rhythmics on this occasion were steady but increasingly frustrated Boro passing around the box well marshalled by committed visitors. 

Assistant Manager Chris Hogg, improbably taking charge of City for the first time and on the doorstep of his own hometown - after the unthinkable loss of boss Manning’s son Theo - understandably showed every emotion in front of away fans following the full time whistle, after his struggling team fashioned a first away win of the season, with all the sweet ingredients reserved for Teeside dreams.

With playmaker Scott Twine out injured, energetic captain Jason Knight pushed up in the 10 and Nahki Wells replaced Sinclair Armstrong up front - but high flying Boro started purposefully and got in down City’s left, first Finn Azaz with space to steer a shot across the face of goal, next Emmanuel Latte Lath firing wide, before a fast break and 2 on 1 saw the striker go clear on goal but poke wide.

It looked like it might be a long day for out of form City but there were flashes of quality on the break - Japanese winger Yu causing problems on the right, drawing a free kick and then flashing a shot at goal from range, yet midway through the half the visitors capitalised from their press as Knight won it back high up, got to the byline, and cut it back for Mehmeti to take his time and slam home.

Against the run of play, this gave the visitors the belief they needed to weather the Boro storm, defending a corner at the second attempt Latte Lath again slipped in behind but under pressure lifted over from a tight angle. Next the classy Ben Doak dropped a shoulder and jinked inside to force Max O’Leary into a save from which Latte Lath and ex City player Luke Ayling nearly turned home.

There was a warning of more to come from a City side growing in confidence as Wells dragged a snap shot wide from a good move, and after blocking efforts from Micah Hamilton and then Ayling and Hayden Hackney, two minutes into injury time Knight again won it back high up, again ran at back-tracking defenders, this time the ball spinning loose for Yu to curl unerringly into the bottom corner.

On a day of such high emotions, repeating the feat of last season and being 2-0 up at the Riverside before the break was stirring stuff and unlike a nervous second half in February, this time the away side came out ready to scrap and frustrate their hosts and control the game.  In evidence within minutes as Hackney wrestled Zak Vyner to ground in the box appealing desperately for a penalty.

And unlike February, it wasn’t one way traffic either as City probed again and Mehmeti had time on the left to cut inside, make room and force a save. Where in the first half the visitors had been able to get in behind City’s left, now they met stern resistance, never more obvious than the running battle between the tireless Ross McCrorie and Ayling, drawing a foul his counterpart would be proud of.

Indeed tussles between the pair could have resulted in a second yellow for the ex-City defender, but he was hauled off before that could happen - one of a series of changes which included Sinclair Amstrong replacing Wells up front for City, and predecessor Tommy Conway entering the fray for Boro, who with his first touch created room and fed loanee Doak whose shot was beaten away.

Local boy Hogg’s side were throwing themselves in between every attempt at goal and Latte Lath was twice denied before substitute Delano Burgzorg spun just inside the box following a left wing corner and stung O’Leary’s hands. Then a flowing move down the left saw Conway slip on the edge of the box but Riley McGree continued and the overlapping Doak made room only to steer wide.

A now scrappy game was slipping away from Boro as was evident from the foul count as City drew stoppage after stoppage - but still posed a threat of their own, in particular with five minutes left when Yu cleared up well in his own box and then threaded a visionary through ball downfield for Armstrong to charge onto, storming past his marker and in on goal, only to flash narrowly wide.

The visitors were by now completely in control around their box and McCrorie and sub George Earthy were frustrating their opponents on the touchline in front of the City fans. There was still time for Hackney to smash a shot high and wide but this had long since become another huge win on Teeside, a fitting R.I.P. for Manning’s son - there must be (another) angel (playing with our hearts).

O’Leary 7
McCrorie 8
Tanner 7
Vyner 7
McNally 6
Williams 7
Bird 7
Knight 8
Mehmeti 7
Yu 9
Wells 6

Armstrong 6
Earthy 7
Naismith 7
McGuane 6

[mozo]

Well written mate! 

There were 5 bookings for Boro and it should have been 7, with Ayling sent off. I think we we have to give our players credit for that. We didn't control the game, but we played some really clever stuff at times.

[One Team]

Great write up @Olé.

I thought we looked a lot better without Twine in the team, midfield much more robust and at times threatening.

[brady bunch]

Lets be honest, we got some luck and did what lots of teams have done to us recently (scored against the run of play). Their wasteful finishing helped and once we took the lead, we settled and looked nearly confortable at times!

Happy days!

[Davefevs]

Thought our away support came across really well on RTV yesterday.  Did it feel like that inside the ground Rob?

[Red-Robbo]

Good report, but isn't Yu his first name? I thought Japanese write their family names first, like Hungarians (eg: Nagy Adam) but we render them into English by reversing that order. 

[Stockwood gate]

What a lovely welcome for Tommy Conway received have not seen that level of hatred for ages towards a player even worse than Kasey palmer