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THE NORTH-EAST SUMMIT - YOUNG STRIKE EARNS POINT FOR BORO 7-11-07
Stuart Young
Luke Young's twenty-five yard strike earned a much needed point for a struggling Middlesbrough side.
Newcastle were demolished in their own backyard by Portsmouth whilst Sunderland were very unlucky not to get anything at Manchester City on Monday night.
Middlesbrough
A very closely fought game at the Riverside on Saturday involved two teams struggling at the wrong half of the table. The result would have been disappointing for both managers as neither team had any real desire to take all three points. As it turned out though, it was a fair result.
A late change saw Chris Riggott recalled to the team to partner Wheater in the centre of defence after Woodgate missed out due to a tight hamstring.
Riggott looked rusty. The minimal amount of games under his belt this season was evident as he struggled with Bent's strength and pace. This resulted in Spurs' goal out of nothing - Riggott's lack of defensive capabilities allowed Bent to turn inside his marker and get a shot in from twenty yards to make it 1-0.
The momentum of the game swung in Tottenham's favour once they had scored and they looked the more likely to score again before half-time.
Boro came out stronger in the second half and almost immediately got themselves back in the game through Luke Young, who scored a twenty-five yard cracker from the right-hand side of the Spurs box.
The game produced end-to-end action in the last ten minutes but neither side could make the breakthrough.
A point each was fair on reflection and Southgate will be pleased his side has stopped the losing run and can now concentrate on getting a result at Bolton on Sunday.
Some good news on the injury front, Robert Huth and Emanuel Pogatetz both played on Tuesday night for the reserves and look to be well on their way to returning to the first team.
So with the tension on Teesside slightly reduced after Saturday's result, it would be fair to say that this could be a turning point for a Boro side which up until now has been lacking in willingness and confidence.
Although Bolton are in a similar position to the Boro, it is still a match that Boro can comfortably win.
I've seen a couple of Bolton's last games and they are shocking at the back. With Aliadiere back up front it will be easier to break down defences and this game could really kick-start a Boro revival.
Newcastle
Portsmouth came to St James' Park on Saturday looking for the win that has evaded them since 1949.
Some great defending by Newcastle's Brazilian Capaca allowed Portsmouth to score at almost every occasion they went forward in the first eighteen minutes.
Luckily for Capaca, his manager hauled him off and the nightmare ended for the Brazilian, not to mention the relieved Newcastle fans.
It took only eleven minutes for Portsmouth to destroy Newcastle's Saturday afternoon. There was no coming back for the Magpies from then and all they could do was to try and reduce the embarrassment.
Sol Campbell must have felt sorry for them as he scored an own goal to help control the humiliation for a couple of minutes but it was Portsmouth who had the last laugh as they scored a second half goal to make it 4-1.
Looking back at the chances in the game, this tie could have ended 5-5. To their credlt (and probably due to a soft telling off by Allardyce at half-time), Newcastle came out in the second period and had a go at Portsmouth.
They could have been level after ninety minutes but James produced some fine saves and kept the game out of sight for the Magpies.
Allardyce's men have to pick themselves up after that dreadful performance and look forward to the big derby match against Sunderland on Saturday. This will be, as always, a close encounter which I'm sure will have plenty of bite about it.
Both teams are looking for points for different reasons. Big Sam and his boys might be a bit wary about this one as his side come up against the "big-game Keane factor".
Sunderland
It was Sunderland who impressed me most after the weekend's fixtures. They travelled to Manchester City on Bonfire Night and were faced with the big task of tackling the surprise package of the season so far.
Manchester City had produced some great football and had had some great results so far this season. It was predicted that Sunderland were going to be in for a very long evening at the City of Manchester Stadium.
But it was Keane's side that started brighter and they were stronger in every department. Jones was a threat to City's defence and Sunderland's back four were equal to whatever City had in attack. You can't knock Keane's side for effort as they humbled City in the first half and indeed for most of the second.
Eriksson made a winning change in the second half though as he replaced Johnson with Vassell. This brought more energy to City's approach and they eventually went ahead as Vassell easily burst past Nosworthy to cross for Ireland to smash a volley past Gordon in the Sunderland goal.
Keane will forget the 1-0 defeat by City and concentrate on the big game which awaits his side this Saturday. Roy has played in many big games and will be influencing his players as much as he can in the preparation for Saturday's massive derby tie.
Newcastle still remain out in front for the race to the North-East Summit and will look to extend their lead on Sunderland and Boro as they visit the Mackems this Saturday. Another action packed weekend of North-East football awaits us.
See You At The Top
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