Boro the better side?
04 February 2008
Newcastle 1 Middlesbrough 1
The general consensus was that the first half was poor and the second a lot better but, to be honest, I really enjoyed the whole match. I saw it as two teams giving their all, both trying to win the game with sprinklings of skill here and there.
Two regular debates amongst football people centre around over-protection of keepers and the off-side law. This game flung up both.
In the first five minutes Schwarzer completely messed up a corner, spilled the ball and the alert Owen scrambled it home but for some inexplicable reason the ref gave a foul. I wonder what he thinks when he says the replay. Embarrassment at a guess.
Fairly even Steven in the first half the game opened up more in the second and it was Owen who broke the deadlock with a fine header from an Emre free-kick.
Thereafter Newcastle had a couple of half chances to settle the match but, as the game wore on, it was the visitors who looked the more likely. And so it transpired with the giant Huth getting his head to a right wing cross and gently floating it across and over Given. Dong-Gook Lee was in an obvious off-side position right in front of the keeper but the ref in his wisdom gave the goal. Maybe he was surprised that Dong-Gook was actually interfering with play!!
'Boro could actually have won it but Downing's free came back off the post to Aliadiere who blasted home but this time he had been off-side as the free-kick was taken.
Lots of talking points, decent entertainment. Two mediocre teams playing their hearts out.
Lets have derby's every week
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