Middlesbrough 3 Scunthorpe United 0

Dec 27 2009 Sunday Sun

And a minute later Boro rattled the bar as Johnson cracked in a sizzling 30-yard effort. When the rebound fell to Aliadiere 10 yards out it got stuck between his feet and a defender arrived to tackle before he could dig it out for a shot.

But the pressure told as the inevitable second came on the stroke of half-time.

Hoyte carried the ball forward and tried to pick out Lita in the box but as defender McCann stretched out a foot to block, he could only play the ball invitingly into the path of Williams who arrived unmarked to stroke inside the foot of the near post from the edge of the box.

In stoppage time, a McMahon cross from the right bounced through and clipped a post.

Scunthorpe made two changes at the break, Wright coming on for O’Connor and Forte for Hayes but any hopes they had of clawing their way back evaporated within a minute as Boro made a dramatic start to the second half and scored within a minute.

Lita stepped over a ball from Williams into the box and it ran nicely for Aliadiere to lash home a third goal to put the result beyond doubt.

With the job done, Boro lost some of their zing and that let the 10 men get forward more, and for a spell the home side’s back line were called into action.

Scunthorpe threatened on 57 minutes as Thompson got down the right and almost picked out Forte at the far post but McMahon just got a foot in, then in quick succession McCann had a shot deflected wide off Wheater and put another effort off target when the resulting corner was only half cleared.

On 62 minutes after Boro failed to clear a routine ball in, it fell to Thompson, but Hoyte put in a blocking tackle as he unleashed his 15-yard shot.

Straight down the other end, Boro thereatened as O’Neil broke clear and sent the ball out to the right for Lita but his angled drive was blocked.

On 65 minutes Boro put Marcus Bent on for Aliadiere.

There was another quick break from Boro on 68 minutes as a corner was cleared and O’Neil deftly pushed it first time into the path of Williams as he broke towards the box, but he stumbled and allowed a defender to whip away the ball.

Boro theatened again on 70 minutes as there was a furious scramble in the Scunthorpe box and after Wheater had a shot charged down, the ball ricocheted around before falling to Pogatetz who drilled in a low shot on the turn that was deflected just wide of the far post.

Mark Yeates came on for Johnson on 70 minutes.

Boro continued to pile on the pressure as Hoyte had a shot charged down, O’Neil blasted a 20-yard free-kick over and Bent put in a low shot that squirmed under a defender’s boot before being smothered by the keeper and Lita spooned a shot at the keeper after another furious scramble.

But Scunthorpe twice almost caught Boro on the break as first McCann wriggled through to blast a shot straight at Coyne, then Thompson got round the right to fire across the face of goal.

On 80 minutes Pogatetz limped off to be replaced by Riggott.

And on 83 minutes, Thompson missed the chance to head home as a cross in caused chaos before Riggott nodded off the line and Coyne gathered.

Boro blotted their copybook late on as Lita was sent off two minutes after the linesman indicated there had been some kind of off the ball incident.