Town Could Be Unchanged Against Boro
Friday, 13th Sep 2013 18:06

Boss Mick McCarthy could name an unchanged side as Town face Middlesbrough in the first of two home games. The Blues manager, whose team take on Yeovil on Tuesday, was pleased with the performance in the 1-1 draw at Birmingham a fortnight ago when Town should have claimed all three points.

Centre-half Tommy Smith has been away with New Zealand and right-back Elliott Hewitt with the Welsh U21s, but they have both returned unscathed and McCarthy is close to having a fully fit squad.

“Tommy and Elliott are fine,” he said. “There’s only Tyrone Mings that’s injured still.

"It was six weeks tomorrow that he got injured at Reading and he’s out doing one-v-ones and two-v-twos and striking balls. He’ll be back shortly, I think, so I’m delighted with that.”

The Blues boss says the next two or three games might come too soon for the left-back, who in any case would probably only be a sub with Aaron Cresswell the first choice.

The Town boss says he’s not yet sure whether Saturday's opponents Boro will be amongst this season’s Championship challengers: “They’ve got a good squad and we’ve watched them, we’ve got match reports on them.

"Will they be contenders? Let’s get 10, 15 games out of the way before we decide who’s got a chance.

“You’re looking at the league at the moment and Blackpool are at the top. Nobody would have envisaged that with the problems they seemed to have in getting players. It’ll turn around, let it settle down a bit more.”

McCarthy has been happy with the majority of Town’s displays this season, if not the results, and wants to see more of the same: “I would take a repeat of any one of the performances that we’ve had because I think we’ve played well, barring about 25 minutes against Leeds in the second half when we weren’t particularly good. Every other game I think we’ve played well in.”

Dean Gerken is set to continue in goal with Cresswell at left-back and Luke Chambers probably again on the right. Tommy Smith and Christophe Berra look set to be in the middle of the defence.

Cole Skuse and Luke Hyam seem likely to be in the centre of the midfield with Paul Anderson probably on the right and Ryan Tunnicliffe on the left.

Up front, McCarthy may choose to stick with David McGoldrick and Frank Nouble, although the former Wolves man could drop out in favour of Daryl Murphy.

Boro boss Tony Mowbray has new signing Kei Kamara available after a work permit was granted, but the former Norwich City and Sporting Kansas City striker is yet to train with his new team-mates and appears most likely to be a sub.

Hungarian midfielder Jozsef Varga suffered a hip injury while on international duty and Jacob Butterfield looks set to make his debut for the Teessiders having signed from Norwich before the transfer window closed.

Winger Albert Adomah may be rested having been away on international duty with Ghana in Japan earlier in the week.

Full-back Stuart Parnaby is currently sidelined, but Frazer Richardson should be back from a groin injury. Defender Seb Hines is close to a return after knee surgery.

Mowbray, whose side have won only once this season and have drawn their last three, says the Town match is the start of a difficult run of four games with three away trips and only one home match against AFC Bournemouth.

“We’ve got Ipswich away and Notts Forest in quick succession and then QPR away so we are on a run of really tough football matches,” he said.

“Three of the next four games are away to teams that you might expect to be top half of the table and QPR to probably win this league.

“Three of the next four you would have to say on paper look very difficult. There are no easy games.

“They’re all difficult and we will approach them in a positive manner and hope to pick up points, as we always do.”

Mowbray is a former Town skipper, coach and caretaker-manager. His assistant is Mark Venus, who was also part of George Burley’s Blues side. Ex-Town full-back and midfielder Jamie Clapham is Boro’s senior development coach, in charge of their U21s.

Another ex-Town skipper Grant Leadbitter joined the Teessiders on a Bosman transfer in the summer of 2012 after leaving Portman Road, while defender George Friend was the subject of a Blues offer during the same close season but ultimately decided to join Boro. No current member of the Town squad has played for Saturday’s opponents.

The Blues have had the better of Middlesbrough over the years, winning 28 games (26 in the league), drawing 14 (14) and losing 17 (16). The Teessiders are currently 15th in the Championship, one place and two points above the Blues.

Last time at Portman Road in February, Tommy Smith scored twice and David McGoldrick and Aaron Mclean netted their first goals for the Blues as Town romped to a 4-0 victory.

With boss Mick McCarthy watching the game at home due to illness and assistant Terry Connor in charge, Smith headed home the first seven minutes before the break.

McGoldrick lashed in the second soon after the restart, Mclean added the third just prior to the hour, before Smith nodded in the fourth late on.

Early last season at the Riverside, Boro ran out 2-0 victors via goals from Luke Williams and Mustapha Carayol.

Town had had the better of it until Williams struck in the 34th minute, Lee Martin and Paul Taylor both forcing Boro keeper Jason Steele into saves, but they didn’t seriously threaten again until the closing stages when Daryl Murphy, Michael Chopra and Taylor all went close. Boro sub Carayol cemented the home side’s win on the break in injury time.

Saturday’s referee is James Linington from Newport, Isle of Wight, who has shown 11 yellow cards and one red in four games so far this season.

Linington’s last Town game was the 0-0 draw at Peterborough last season in which he booked two home players and turned down a late Blues penalty appeal.

Squad from: Loach, Gerken, Chambers, Hewitt, Veseli, Cresswell, Smith, Berra, Skuse, Hyam, Wordsworth, Tunnicliffe, Edwards, Anderson, Tabb, Murphy, McGoldrick, Nouble, Taylor, Lee.

Photo: Action Images

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NoCanariesAllowed added 20:28 - Sep 13 I suppose the only way Nouble is going to get any better is if he plays. I just hope having him in the starting XI won't see Taylor pushed out, because at the moment, I know who I'd rather see.
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riley26 added 20:58 - Sep 13 Adomah and Butterfield were very astute signings from Tony, hopefully we get the job done on Saturday though, 3-1 to the Town, McGoldrick, Murphy and Nouble the scorers.
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NorthstaNder added 20:58 - Sep 13 FFS why does he persist with Skuse and Hyam in the middle!? Especially at home! Surely it would be worth giving Wordsworth a chance alongside Skuse? (This is, of course, assuming he's still not injured)
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Mark added 21:58 - Sep 13 With Mings our only injury (and he is a backup player), there are no excuses if we don't do the business tomorrow and Tuesday. If we fail to get 4 or 6 points from those games, I will be worried about what the season has in store for us.
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Michael11 added 22:37 - Sep 13 We dominated against Birmingham with that side so suppose you wouldn't change things. Think people have been quite unfair on Nouble, he's got hardly any first team football experience and everyone is saying he's useless. I think with a bit of confidence he can be a key player for us.
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ArnieM added 23:37 - Sep 13 McGoldrick / Murphy need to start hitting the back of the net and start from tomorrow. I'm honestly not sure mcgoldrick has it in him to do it regularly at Championship level. Murphy continues to deceive and will need 5 attempts to get 1 goal. Not good enough, sorry!
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Garv added 23:42 - Sep 13 Please not Nouble.
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Blaine96 added 23:42 - Sep 13

Tomorrow and Tuesday are the perfect 2 games to kick start our season. As Alan Lee said in the post from today. Terry is working with the strikers on certain drills. Mick and Terry have had this international break to sit and let the players know were they are going wrong and how to fix it. This international break could have been a very good thing for us as the players would have had 2 solid weeks to improve on certain things. Im sure we can get 6 points from these 2 games. I personally will take 4 but i can see 2 wins if the players have used the break wisely and really put a shift in. COYB!!

stevelincsexile added 07:49 - Sep 14 Gutted short staffed got to work but confident our season starts today have that feeling in my water Nouble and Mcgoldrick will score COYB.
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Wickets added 09:06 - Sep 14 Just hope the 2 strikers we play,whoever they are,realise that they need to be close too each other not 20 yds apart!!
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TimmyH added 11:01 - Sep 14 Both the front pair to score....I very much doubt it, we're lucky to see a striker score. Nouble so far has not had that much first team experience to be fair (a few games at the end of last season) but has yet to make any sort of impact but neither has Taylor played in the first 11 since injury, surely he must be fully fit now?
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whosroundisitanyway added 11:02 - Sep 14 I'd love to see Alan Lee on the bench. Why not?
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LankHenners added 11:21 - Sep 14 Don't be too harsh on Nouble - he's a big physical presence and he has bags of determination so let him play a few games to get into the swing of things. I remember him being very dangerous against Birmingham at home last season.
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SouperJim added 11:31 - Sep 14 Henners, your avatar is a big physical presence with bags of determination, but is he good enough to play for town? Fwiw I agree with you btw.
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Stato added 11:54 - Sep 14 4231 formation for me. play skuse and hyam behind tunnicliffe, tabb, and taylor with mcgoldrick up top
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tallguy6767 added 11:58 - Sep 14 For me the next 2 games are a big yardstick to see where were going this season. No less that 2 wins is good enough as these are 2 average sides at best. We need a run of wins to launch our season or it will be another of below par disappointment!
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