Let's face it, the 2013/14 season won’t go down as a classic.
There was precious little to cheer - home or away.
Before a ball had been kicked, there were genuine hopes that Boro would challenge for promotion but a poor start resulted in Tony Mowbray’s sacking in October.
Aitor Karanka came in, steadied the ship, and made the team stronger defensively.
It briefly looked as though Boro would push for the play-offs at the turn of the year but a record-breaking goal drought put paid to that and the campaign fizzled out.
Still, there were highs and lows and here’s my pick of the best and worst games of the season.
View gallery Philip Tallentire: Pick of Boro's best and worst games of 2013/14 season
View gallery FIVE OF THE BEST
1. Boro 4 Doncaster 0
Friday, October 25, 2013
Attendance: 21,882
EMOTIONS were running high for the televised Spirit of Teesside clash with Doncaster at the Riverside.
The game came just four days after Tony Mowbray had been sacked as manager and his assistant Mark Venus was placed in temporary charge.
There was a higher than normal crowd of 21,882 in the stadium for the first game of the post-Mogga era and Venus decided it was time to loosen the tactical shackles that had appeared to inhibit the players.
He was rewarded with a swashbuckling performance.
Lining up in an attacking 4-4-2 formation, Boro raced out of the traps and took the lead in the eighth minute when Kei Kamara hit a defence-splitting through ball from deep inside his own half to release Albert Adomah, who lofted an exquisite chip over the advancing keeper.
Adomah scored the second in the 35th minute when he headed Richard Smallwood’s incoming free-kick powerfully down into the turf and into the roof of the net.
Kamara stuck out a leg to divert Grant Leadbitter’s 68th minute free-kick over the line to make it 3-0 and Dani Ayala, signed on loan earlier in the week, directed an 83rd minute Leadbitter corner into the net with a combination of head and shoulder.
2. Boro 3 Birmingham 1
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Attendance: 13,399
On paper, it was an end of season game that promised little.
Boro’s season was as good as over while Birmingham were in free-fall, but those who attended were rewarded with a thrilling match.
Both sides had goalbound efforts cleared off the line before Boro took the lead in the 28th minute when Jonathan Woodgate headed down a Grant Leadbitter corner to Danny Graham, who controlled the ball before firing a shot into the net.
On the half hour mark Jacob Butterfield made it 2-0 when he allowed a Jozsef Varga throw to bounce past him and, reading the flight superbly, he lashed the ball on the half-volley from long-range over the keeper and into the goal.
Emyr Huws pulled one back for City in the 37th minute with another stunning finish from distance when he cut inside from the right before firing an unstoppable shot past Dimi Konstantopoulos.
Late on, Boro were reduced to nine men inside six madcap minutes when first Kenneth Omeruo and then Ben Gibson were sent packing for picking up two yellow cards apiece.
But, in the 89th minute, Lee Tomlin sealed the victory with a ruthless finish.
3. Millwall 0 Boro 2
Saturday, December 21, 2013
Attendance: 11,078
The game itself was nothing special, but the result was hugely significant.
Ahead of kick-off, Aitor Karanka had been in charge for five games and managed a points haul of four from a possible 15.
That meant, on the morning of the match, Boro were just three points above the drop zone and in danger of becoming embroiled in a relegation scrap.
Kicking off at 5.30pm in pouring winter rain, the first half at the New Den was a stinker and no doubt those watching the live coverage at home were sorely tempted to switch off.
But, four minutes into the second half, Dani Ayala played a fine ball forward from deep to release Emmanuel Ledesma, who cut inside two defenders and curled a stunning shot into the net.
After scoring, the Argentinian held aloft Stuart Parnaby’s shirt as a mark of support for the full-back, who had recently suffered a family tragedy. It was a touching gesture.
Boro sealed the win in the 89th minute when Ledesma split the Millwall defence with a pin-point pass that released Albert Adomah, who dribbled around the advancing keeper before slotting his shot into the vacant net.
4. Boro 1 Burnley 0
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Attendance: 20,689
Burnley arrived at the Riverside on Boxing Day sitting proudly on top of the Championship table.
Boro may have gone into the game on the back of a win at Millwall but they weren’t expected to trouble the leaders.
So it was a pleasant surprise that Aitor Karanka’s team thoroughly dominated their visitors.
The margin of victory suggested that the game was close, but, with better finishing, Boro would have had the points wrapped up at half-time.
The winning goal came in the 24th minute when Emmanuel Ledesma tried his luck with a long-range shot that dipped in front of keeper Tom Heaton before bouncing over his shoulder and into the net.
It was an impressive performance against a good team and it suggested the Boro players were starting to feel comfortable with Karanka’s 4-2-3-1 formation.
5. Boro 4 Yeovil Town 1
Saturday, October 5, 2013
Attendance: 13,181
Boro had won just one game in their first 10 Championship fixtures of the season - none at home - prior to the visit of Yeovil.
Tony Mowbray’s position was coming under increasing pressure as he failed to find a winning formula. But, on a sunny autumn afternoon, rampant Boro fired four goals past a poor Yeovil team.
There was a early setback, though, when Rhys Williams cut out a routine header forward, allowing Liam Davis to break on goal and slot a low shot through Jason Steele’s legs.
The mood threatened to turn ugly but Boro equalised four minutes later when Grant Leadbitter fired home an Albert Adomah cross.
Adomah added the second when Leadbitter’s penalty was pushed onto the post and the winger converted the rebound.
Jacob Butterfield scored Boro’s third from distance in the 50th minute and Kei Kamara powered home a bullet header 14 minutes later.
FIVE WORST GAMES
1. Barnsley 3 Boro 2
Saturday, October 12, 2013
Attendance: 11,438
The first 45 minutes of this game will go down in Boro folklore for all the wrong reasons.
Barnsley scored three goals that, as much as anything, were the result of defending that could only be described as inept.
And yet, Boro should have raced into a 2-0 lead but Lukas Jutkiewicz missed two outstanding early chances.
The Tykes made them pay by scoring three inside 20 chaotic minutes.
Paddy McCourt waltzed through the defence to put his side ahead in the 24th minute before Jim O’Brien’s shot was deflected past Jason Steele off Chris O’Grady in the 41st minute.
Then, just before the half-time whistle, O’Grady scored from the penalty spot. The visiting fans were in open revolt at that point and Tony Mowbray’s days appeared to be numbered.
Albert Adomah scored two second half goals to restore some pride but Barnsley held on to win and Mowbray was sacked two days later.
2. Ipswich 3 Boro 1
Saturday, September 14, 2013
Attendance: 15,276
The result was bad enough, but it was Boro’s performance at Portman Road that suggested there were fundamental flaws in the team Tony Mowbray had built.
In simple terms, they lacked penetration up front and couldn’t keep clean sheets and, at any level, that’s a recipe for disaster.
Boro took the lead in the 12th minute when Albert Adomah hooked home a close-range shot.
Ipswich’s equaliser was poor from a defensive point of view with Dean Whitehead failing to intercept David McGoldrick as he skipped past him before hitting a long-range shot that Jason Steele was unable to keep out.
Luke Chambers headed home an Aaron Cresswell cross to put the Tractor Boys ahead in the 57th minute and, in stoppage time, Jonathan Woodgate failed to cut out a long ball and McGoldrick exploited the error to nip in and stroke a fine shot across Steele and into the net.
3. QPR 2 Boro 0
Saturday, September 28, 2013
Attendance: 17,081
It’s no disgrace to lose to such an expensively-assembled team, but Boro were abject at Loftus Road.
They lacked invention in possession and composure when they didn’t have the ball.
QPR had conceded just two goals in eight games ahead of kick-off so it was critical that Boro kept things tight at the back.
Unfortunately, the visitors failed to clear their lines in the fourth minute, allowing Joey Barton to fire in a shot that was deflected past Jason Steele off Frazer Richardson.
Ten minutes before half-time, Charlie Austin converted a penalty to make it 2-0 and Rangers saw out the rest of the match with relative ease.
The mood within the Boro squad was evident in a verbal bust-up between several players during the post-match warm-down.
4. Doncaster 0 Boro 0
Saturday, February 1, 2014
Attendance: 11,440
Boro fans had to endure some pretty dire football last season but this match was an absolute stinker.
The visitors were backed by more than 4,000 fans but were unable to reward their supporters with a decent display and recorded their third successive blank in front of goal.
Boro barely troubled keeper Sam Johnstone in a lacklustre display that left Aitor Karanka fuming.
He might have been even more annoyed had he realised that his team would go another four full games without scoring!
5. Reading 2 Boro 0
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Attendance: 17,228
After recording four straight wins, Aitor Karanka’s men had given themselves a slim chance of finishing in the top six.
Then, they came crashing down to earth with a bump by losing at home to struggling Millwall.
The head coach was looking for a reaction at Reading but he didn’t get one.
Boro never got going and, at times, looked shambolic, particularly at the back.
Kenneth Omeruo’s decision to head a cross Dimi Konstantopoulos was ready to claim allowed Garath McCleary the opportunity to head the ball across goal to Adam Le Fondre, who opened the scoring early on.
George Friend headed a Jordan Obita free-kickinto his own net to double Reading’s lead for them just before the quarter-hour mark and it was effectively game over.
