Boro 2 Northampton 0
30 August 2007
Steve McClaren's first win as Middlesbrough manager came in this identical fixture six years ago. That day Boro beat Northampton Town 3-1.
Rochemback and Lee scored Boro's two goals against a Northampton side that looked divisions below us.
The first half was one way traffic with nothing at the end of it to show for all the hard work.
However, as the second half got into motion Rochemback received his just reward for his recent excellent displays when he was fouled by Bradley Jones from about twenty-five yards out. His free-kick was fantastic; curling around on it's way to goal and making light work of the Northampton wall by just going around it. The wall's presence did make the keeper blind to the shot however and he was caught as the unstoppable effort made its inevitable way to the back of the net.
The second came on sixty-four minutes as a strong Stewart Downing run ended in a square ball being delivered to Dong-Gook Lee. The Korean brought the ball down, transferred it on to his right foot and then curled it away to score his first goal in a Boro shirt.
Another good performance that should build confidence for the future.
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