As Sir Alex Ferguson famously said, it’s getting to the ‘squeaky bum time’ end of the season.
There are 10 games to go and the top four in the Championship all have 66 points.
Boro are fourth in the table by virtue of the fact that they have a slightly inferior goal difference.
The good thing is, history tells us that when the club has been in a strong position 10 games from the end of the season, they more often than achieve promotion.
Read on as Philip Tallentire revisits Boro’s post-war promotion campaigns.
Successful campaigns
1997/98
Nationwide Division One
Position with 10 games to go: 1st
Final position: 2nd
Boro were top of the pile with 10 to go after beating Swindon 6-0 to overhaul Nottingham Forest. That result followed a 4-0 loss at Forest and a 5-0 defeat at QPR. They did slip to fourth at one point in the run-in but six wins and two draws out of the final 10 games ensured Bryan Robson’s side scrape into second place, one point ahead of Sunderland.
1994/95
Endsleigh Division One
Position with 10 games to go: 3rd
Final position: 1st (champions)
With just one team going up automatically that season due to the re-structuring of the Premiership, Bryan Robson’s resurgent Boro only had eyes on the title. They’d been competing at the top all season but back-to-back defeats left the club third with 10 to go, two points behind leaders Tranmere with a game in hand. It’s worth noting that, like now, Boro had the best defensive record at that point in the campaign. Promotion was confirmed before the final game when Bolton slipped up, handing Robson’s team the title.
1991/92
Division Two
Position with 10 games to go: 6th
Final position: 2nd
With 10 to go, Boro were sixth, no less than nine points adrift of leaders Ipswich with two games in hand. Lennie Lawrence’s side did dip as low as seventh during the run-in but five wins in the final six fixtures catapulted the club into the top two going into the final weekend. Boro, reduced to 10-men and training 1-0, clinched promotion into the brand new Premier League after winning 2-1 at Wolves.
1987/88
Division Two
Position with 10 games to go: 6th
Final position: 3rd (play-off place)
Brucie Rioch’s red and white army were well off the pace 10 games from the end of the season after a woeful winter. Top of a 23-team table in December, a run of just two wins in 11 games took its toll. However, Boro improved in the run-in, winning six in nine to sit in the second automatic spot going into the final weekend. A home defeat to Leicester consigned Rioch’s team to the play-offs, but they won promotion after overcoming a two-legged final against Division One Chelsea.
1986/87
Division Three
Position with 10 games to go: 3rd
Final position: 2nd
Boro were riding high on post-liquidation adrenalin. Bruce Rioch’s young team had risen from the ashes to mount a promotion campaign against the odds. With 10 to go Boro were third, one point behind second-placed Swindon and nine adrift of leaders Bournemouth, who had played two games more. Eight wins in an unbeaten run-in guaranteed promotion with a game to spare.
1973/74
Division Two
Position with 10 games to go: 1st
Final position: 1st (champions)
A text book campaign. Jack Charlton’s champions were nine points clear with 10 to go in 1974. With two points for a win, that was a mighty lead and they clinched promotion with seven fixtures remaining. Boro eventually finished 15 points clear of second-placed Luton Town.
1966/67
Division Three
Position with 10 games to go: 6th
Final position: 2nd
Only two went up in those days and, with just two points for a win, Boro were five points adrift of second-placed Bristol Rovers but had three games in hand. Memorably, the only time Stan Anderson’s Boro occupied a top-two place that season was when they won their final game, beating Oxford 4-1 to clinch promotion back to the second division a year after suffering relegation.
Unsuccessful promotion campaigns
1990/91
Division Two
Position with 10 games to go: 5th
Final position: 7th (play-offs)
The top three went up automatically in 1990/91. With 10 to play, Boro were a massive 13 points behind leaders Oldham and second-placed West Ham, who had also played a game less, and nine behind Sheffield Wednesday in third, who had two games in hand on Colin Todd’s team. Boro won just four of their last 10, limping into the final play-off spot.
1968/69
Division Two
Position with 10 games to go: 2nd
Final position: 4th
It was tight at the top 46 years ago. Just three points separated the top four with Boro sitting second, one point behind the leaders, Brian Clough’s Derby. Boro were a points better off than third-placed Cardiff and had a game in hand. But Stan Anderson’s side lost their nerve, winning just two of their final 10 fixtures to slip out of contention well before the final weekend, finishing fourth.
1960/61
Division Two
Position with 10 games to go: 4th
Final position: 5th
Boro were in with an outside chance of sneaking into the top two with 10 to go but it would have taken a fantastic run of results to overhaul leaders Ipswich, who were seven points better off, and second-placed Sheffield United, who were six ahead but had played two games more. Despite seven goals from Brian Clough, Boro only managed four wins on the home straight, finishing fifth.
1959/60
Division Two
Position with 10 games to go: 3rd
Final position: 5th
With just two points for a win and only two promotion places up for grabs, Boro had a mountain to climb with 10 games to go, trailing leaders Cardiff by 12 points and second-placed Aston Villa by 10. They managed four wins in the run-in but were never realistically in contention.
No comments:
Post a Comment