On this week's show, Stuart Rayner and Leon Wobschall discuss the contrasting fortunes of League Two Yorkshire rivals Harrogate Town and Doncaster Rovers, before looking at the contrasting FA Cup third round fortunes of Leeds United and Huddersfield Town.
They then turn their eye to the League Cup and consider how Middlesbrough might just have the beating of Chelsea over their two-leg semi-final
They then turn their eye to the League Cup and consider how Middlesbrough might just have the beating of Chelsea over their two-leg semi-final
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SportsTranscript
00:00 [Music]
00:11 Hello and welcome to the latest edition of Football Talk from the Yorkshire Post, where we will be discussing some of the latest talking points from the world of football with members of our football writing team.
00:19 On this week's episode we're joined by Chief Football Writer for the Yorkshire Post, Stuart Rayner, and Football Writer for the Yorkshire Post, Leon Walshall, to discuss all of the latest developments affecting our local clubs.
00:29 Don't forget you can keep up to date with all the football news across Yorkshire and beyond by logging onto our website at yp.sport@nationalworld.com, as well as checking out our various Twitter feeds, the main one being @ypsport.
00:42 If you search for Yorkshire Post Sport, Yorkshire Post Football, or even Sheffield Sport on Facebook, you can find us there as well.
00:48 And if you have any questions for our writers, you can get in touch using those various Twitter or Facebook pages, or email us directly with a subject matter at footballtalkpodcast@yp.sport@nationalworld.com.
00:59 YorkshirePost.co.uk
01:01 As mentioned earlier in the intro, this week we're joined by Chief Football Writer for the Yorkshire Post, Stuart Rayner, and Football Writer for the Yorkshire Post, Leon Walshall.
01:09 Good morning guys.
01:10 Morning.
01:11 This week was a week which saw the FA Cup games up and down the country, and we saw a mixed bag in terms of results for our Yorkshire teams, with Rotherham United falling 1-0 to Fulham.
01:24 Middlesbrough suffered a late 1-0 loss to Aston Villa.
01:27 Hull City faced a replay against Birmingham City after a 1-1 draw between the two sides.
01:34 And both Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday progressed in the competition thanks to 4-0 victories.
01:41 But let's start this week in League 2, where Harrogate Town maintained their unbeaten league record against Doncaster Rovers with a convincing 3-1 victory over their visitors.
01:52 This now sees Simon Weaver's side only two points off the playoff spots, while Doncaster Rovers are 10 points clear of danger.
02:01 What are your thoughts on the game, Stuart?
02:05 Well, it was a strange game, Mark, because in a lot of respects Doncaster played quite well, you know, better than Harrogate, you know, between the boxes.
02:17 Harrogate started the better, but Tommy Rowe equalised for Fulham's opening goal within about a minute.
02:25 And from there on, they dominated the rest of the first half without making enough chances.
02:33 But at the start of the second half, they dominated again and did start to make chances.
02:38 Luke Molineux in particular had a few, but there just wasn't that clinical edge to them, which is a surprising thing to say about Doncaster.
02:46 Because, you know, for all their faults this season, the two centre-forwards, Joe Ironside and Mo Farley, have been a real strength for them and quite clinically unhighlighted.
02:58 Ironside's form on last week's podcast, and rightly so.
03:03 But yeah, you throw that in with, you know, Graham McCabin's very unhappy with the defending for all three goals.
03:13 And you've got a bit of a recipe for disaster.
03:16 And they're just a team where it seems to be, they take one step forward, two steps back, you know, all the time.
03:25 It must be really frustrating, well, it is really frustrating for Graham McCabin.
03:30 You could see it written all over his face afterwards.
03:34 Every time he thinks they're getting somewhere, they manage to shoot themselves in the foot again.
03:38 But, you know, on the other side of it, for Harrogate Town, you know, it was great for them to get a win when not exactly at their best.
03:47 But, you know, they have been playing well recently.
03:50 They're in a good run of form right now.
03:54 And yeah, everything really positive around that club.
03:57 Seif Olarin had a really good first half, but went off with a hamstring injury, so that's a concern.
04:03 But Abraham Odo in the number 10 role behind the striker was absolutely magnificent for them.
04:10 Kane Ramsey really good as well.
04:12 So it just feels like there's a lot of positives around Harrogate Town at the moment, you know, in the top half of the table.
04:18 And actually talking openly about targeting the playoffs, whether they manage that or not, you know, we'll wait and see.
04:26 But it's nice to hear them in that positive frame of mind.
04:31 Whereas at Doncaster Rovers, they just can't seem to get out of this negativity that they've been trapped in for a few years now.
04:39 And so they're trying again already in the transfer market to, you know, negotiate their way out of it.
04:47 But it's proven a difficult cycle to break for them.
04:52 Yeah, I mean, looking at Harrogate, they've sort of got the Indian sign a little bit over Doncaster, haven't they?
05:02 Obviously done the double this year and I know Stuart was at the game on Saturday.
05:09 I did the reverse fixture on the opening day of the season and Harrogate were excellent.
05:14 You mentioned Odo and he had a great game that day along with Ploraren.
05:20 And it was all with a backdrop of the Luke Armstrong scenario as well.
05:25 So yeah, they quite look forward to playing Doncaster, don't they?
05:30 They obviously got a win at Donny last season.
05:33 Stuart's right to say I think the more important thing is things looking healthy at this time of year.
05:39 I mean, if you rewind the clock to 12 months, you know, the sticky, the real sticky spelling they were looking over the shoulders a little bit.
05:48 But yeah, it's been a good encouraging run for Harrogate.
05:54 And, you know, maybe they can have a little bit of fun towards the last playoff place.
06:00 Who knows? But I think the more important thing is that they've consolidated at this level and they won't have any sort of issues this season.
06:08 And yeah, for Doncaster, it just seems, for me Stuart, I think the main thing I sort of see is just that lack of, sort of,
06:17 I mean, they've had disruption with injuries to the likes of Richard Wood and Anderson.
06:22 They just don't have that settled sort of defensive structure and partnership.
06:28 You know, further forward, we spoke about Ironside. He's wailing with goals.
06:33 And, you know, Malfa has shown a fair bit of promise as well.
06:38 But just defensively, they just seem to look too suspect for me.
06:44 And they've given away some soft goals, haven't they?
06:48 And it's just things in the microcosm this season.
06:51 I think they got a good result against MK Dons, wasn't it, the previous week.
06:57 You think they might be getting a little bit of somewhere.
06:59 Obviously, they had a good draw at Mansfield, which many people didn't expect either.
07:04 But they obviously suffer a derby defeat and it just seems to be the way it's going a bit for Doncaster at the minute.
07:13 And I sort of look at them, they've got this EFL trophy game happening next week.
07:19 That suddenly becomes quite big, doesn't it?
07:22 Really didn't get through that. Maybe that gives them something to cling on to at the minute.
07:27 A few weeks ago, we were talking about the fact that if they can manage to get some wins together,
07:33 they might have an outside chance to play.
07:35 That's pretty much gone, isn't it?
07:37 But this trophy game with Wigan suddenly looks a little bit bigger, doesn't it?
07:42 Absolutely. I mean, everyone derides the trophy.
07:46 But I just think as a football club, you just need something to be positive about in the second half of the season.
07:53 Like yourself, Liam, I've covered the trophy over years and years.
08:00 The group stages are an absolute slog sometimes.
08:04 Playing in front of practically empty stadiums, sometimes against kids' teams.
08:10 Just games where it feels like everyone who's there is out of a sense of duty.
08:14 But the further you get in the competition, the more you realise that Wembley's around the corner,
08:20 the more it creates a bit of excitement.
08:22 I've done three of those finals and they've all been really good occasions.
08:27 As with increasingly even the more senior competitions, it's just the route there.
08:34 But yeah, Doncaster just needs some cause to be cheerful, really.
08:38 You see them on their best days and you wouldn't think that they'd be 19th in the table.
08:45 But as Liam says, that defensive platform is a real concern.
08:50 It must be frustrating because obviously Richard Wood, as Liam's alluded to, was signed in the summer
08:56 to provide that stability, that nouse and all that sort of thing.
09:01 And injury problems have stopped him doing that.
09:05 You would in not too recent times have relied on Tom Anderson for that.
09:11 But again, he's had injury problems and they seem to have taken a bit out of him.
09:16 Probably not least the rhythm of playing regularly.
09:19 Joseph Alou is now getting to the stage where he's quite a senior defender,
09:24 but he's still, for me, too prone to those sorts of mistakes.
09:29 It's an area of the field that they need to get sorted out because there are good players in that team.
09:36 Tommy Rowe's an excellent player.
09:39 I think Jamie Sturry's a good addition at right back, but again, he's had injury problems.
09:44 We haven't seen the best of him yet.
09:46 We talked about the centre forwards. It's not that there's no good players in that team.
09:50 It's just that there isn't that consistency.
09:53 I talked a couple of weeks ago about the sort of culture around the club, which I worry about too.
10:00 Although, in fairness, that Harrogate and DOA fans were absolutely magnificent.
10:05 I think one thing that Doncaster do have in their favour is that because of what he did at his last spell at the club,
10:12 the fans are absolutely 100% behind Grant McCann, I think.
10:17 The away fans were certainly cheering his name all through the game,
10:21 so at least there isn't that instability of the unhappiness with the manager.
10:27 It's just up to the manager now to deliver.
10:29 He needs to make some good signings in January and, frankly, he needs some good luck as well.
10:35 Yeah, I think they're in the same pair of hands in that regard, aren't they, Stuart?
10:39 Yeah.
10:40 You're right to say, because in the modern sort of world, most clubs have a bad run of form and it's calling for the manager's head.
10:49 Everyone's sensible football supporters are sick of seeing that, really.
10:57 They won't get anybody better than Grant McCann. He's a fighter.
11:01 Rovers can just get through this period and OK, disappointingly, they had big aspirations at the start of the season.
11:09 They can just provide themselves with some hope in the second and final third of the season.
11:16 You never know. Hopefully, they'll go deep in the cup competition.
11:20 But I do think the major thing looking at them is sorting out that defensive side of it at the minute.
11:28 Yeah.
11:29 Next, we turn our attention to the FA Cup action and we start with Leeds United,
11:34 who, thanks to two goals from Ethan Ampadu and an amazing strike by Patrick Bamford,
11:40 were able to overcome Peterborough United to progress to the fourth round of the competition,
11:45 where they will face Plymouth Argyle at Ellon Road.
11:49 What did you make of the team's performance, Leon?
11:53 Yeah, pretty much. I don't think it could have really gone too much better for Daniel Farquhar.
12:00 He's a guy that me and Stuart have seen at close quarters this season, been impressed by him.
12:07 He doesn't give much away, but looking at him after the game on Sunday,
12:12 he looked pretty happy and satisfied by his standards.
12:16 So he should be. He's pragmatic and he made some changes, some sensible ones,
12:24 giving starts to the likes of Anthony and Firpo and Shackleton, who for the first time in a fair while,
12:32 had a look at Gonto as well. An interesting call and I think a good call as well.
12:39 He could have easily wrested Ethan Ampadu, but he thought, 'No, I'll have a look at him at centre-half.'
12:49 He obviously got his two goals and he was strong and on message throughout.
12:57 I thought that was pretty shrewd as well. You never know, a point later in the season,
13:02 he could have some injuries defensively and he'll have had a look at Ampadu there.
13:08 So I like what he did there. In terms of the all-round performance, on a bit of a difficult pitch,
13:16 it was excellent. You've got to factor in as well, look at all the problems Leeds have had in this stage
13:24 of the competition historically. They've lost five of the previous six heading into the Peterborough game.
13:30 They were on a sticky wicket in that regard as well. If Peterborough hadn't beaten them,
13:39 obviously Leeds United are a huge club, but given that narrative of form, it wouldn't have been a ginormous shot really.
13:45 So, yeah, a lot of boxes ticked by Leeds and obviously headlined by a wonderful goal from Patrick Bamford,
13:54 one of the goals of the season, the goal of the round, but he just carries on his good feeling as well.
14:04 Obviously Farke made the call to start him against Birmingham. I thought that was good management as well.
14:10 Obviously Joe Perrault had a bit of a tough and barren time in front of goal, but it was the perfect opportunity
14:17 to have a look at Bamford. He's done that, he got a goal against Birmingham and he's backed it up,
14:22 showing that sublime quality that we all know he's got in his locker at various points.
14:31 So, yeah, pleasing for Leeds in a lot of respects. They had a look at Archie Gray in centre midfield,
14:39 he looked the part, although he probably should have scored early on.
14:43 So, yeah, I think obviously the bonus for everybody is getting a home draw, isn't it?
14:48 The first time, 14 times I've asked him, it's certainly not a glamorous one against Plymouth,
14:55 but a very winnable tie to get through to the last 16. I just think psychologically as well,
15:04 looking at not just the context with the cup performances over the years,
15:10 I think in the hearing now, they're away from him, it would have been a little bit ropey, hadn't it?
15:15 Certain things had gone against them, against the likes of West Brom and Preston,
15:22 but it was just nagging away in the back of everyone's mind, three successive away defeats.
15:29 So, psychologically, they got back on track in that regard against a good Peterborough side.
15:38 I think Farquhar was right to say that there's not too much difference between them and a bottom-half championship side,
15:45 and they're going well in the league.
15:47 So, I think, yeah, I agree with him in a lot of respects, an important win.
15:53 Obviously, we're pleased to go into Cardiff on Saturday in the league now.
15:58 Yeah, I think a really big thing you can't underestimate as well,
16:04 we often talk about strikers who haven't scored for ages and say,
16:08 once they get that first one, they should go on a run.
16:11 It doesn't always work like that, but it clearly has with Bamford this time.
16:17 You have to be pretty confident to even attempt that goal he scored at Peterborough.
16:24 So, that's obviously a very good sign.
16:27 The way things are when you're chasing a league, you'll never have your main goalscorer red hot all the way through the season.
16:36 There were even spells when the machine Manchester City had up front, Erling Haaland, went four or five games,
16:43 I think, maybe, without scoring a goal last season.
16:46 So, at those stages, you just need somebody else to step forward and weigh in with some goals.
16:52 If Patrick Bamford can have a purple patch of even, say, a month,
16:57 that could be massive in just nudging Leeds United along.
17:03 I'd agree with everything Leon said.
17:06 It was just important and helpful, really, that it was an away FA Cup tie
17:13 and they could just get themselves back on track away from home.
17:16 You can say it was the Cup, you can say it was a lower league team, blah, blah, blah.
17:20 They do need to back it up and all of that, but nevertheless, it just got the monkey off the back a little bit.
17:26 I think now, they just need to go to Cardiff and take something.
17:30 Leon talked about their terrible record in the FA Cup third round.
17:35 They've got a terrible record at Cardiff as well.
17:37 So, if they can just get out to that place with a point even,
17:40 they've then got, I think it's four home games out of five, to build a bit of momentum, a bit of confidence,
17:48 hopefully get in the fifth round of the FA Cup and then really start to address those issues away from home.
17:55 It was just a calming game, which had the possibility to really go the other way.
18:01 Because you can imagine, after the wobble they've had over Christmas, even though we're used to it by now,
18:08 if they were to go out of the FA Cup third round to a lower league side, not play very well,
18:12 you can imagine the sort of panic that could potentially start to build.
18:17 These things allowed everyone to take a more restrained view of things.
18:25 And, yeah, exactly what they needed. Exactly what they needed, I think.
18:30 You never know, Stuart. They might have a little sniff for a cup run as well.
18:36 I know it's early days, but obviously around the last 32 tie at home,
18:41 you look at some of the draws so far, obviously Spurs play Man City, Arsenal have been knocked out by Liverpool.
18:52 It could be one of those where, it's early to say, but you never know.
18:57 An EFL side might go reasonably fast and Leeds can get past Plymouth into the last 16, you never know.
19:09 We saw Sheffield United make the semi-finals last season with heaps of injuries.
19:15 It is doable to juggle these. People always use the excuses about cup runs being a distraction,
19:20 but often they can lift the mood of the place.
19:22 You talked about Don Castorova having things to look forward to and Harrogate.
19:26 Leeds already do with a promotion push, but you can never have too many.
19:30 It just lifts the mood of the place. It can't do any harm, can it?
19:35 No. There's another big game as well, Chelsea v Villa, so one of those will be knocked out as well.
19:40 Exactly, yes.
19:42 Next in the FA Cup, we turn to Huddersfield Town, who crashed out of the competition after a 5-0 defeat to Manchester City.
19:50 It comes as no great surprise, seeing as it is against the best team in England and Europe.
19:57 What positives can Darren Moore take from his side's performance and can he now focus his attention on the Championship, Stuart?
20:07 In terms of focusing his attention, absolutely. That's the only game in town now.
20:13 To be honest, the FA Cup probably wasn't much of a distraction even before the weekend's game.
20:20 Without wanting to sound patronising, I think there were a lot of positives to take.
20:25 It sounds a stupid thing to say when you've lost 5-0, but the reality is Manchester City are that far ahead.
20:32 I've been there on consecutive weekends now and I saw a Premier League side utterly dominated by them in Sheffield United.
20:40 For a side at the bottom of the Championship to take a bit of a pacing there is nothing to be ashamed of.
20:49 For the first half hour in particular, they defended with real discipline and really limited City's chances.
20:58 It was just that drip of pressure that City applied for you by constantly passing the ball in front of you and making you run around.
21:06 That led to those five goals, really.
21:10 Alex Matos, who made his debut on loan from Chelsea, was outstanding.
21:17 Considering that was his first start in senior football, he made two sub appearances for Chelsea.
21:24 One in the 87th minute and one in the 89th minute.
21:27 He was absolutely not intimidated by playing Chelsea.
21:31 He played as a holding midfielder, but I think within the first two minutes he'd gone on a run down the left wing.
21:38 There was a real good mix of energy.
21:41 Leon talked to him before the game and he mentioned about his hero being N'Golo Kante.
21:47 You could see a lot of that in the way he got about the pitch and his hunger to defend and block gaps.
21:54 There was a positivity and an ability on the ball as well.
22:02 It's one game and it's frankly not a game that matters too much. The pressure will be on much more against Plymouth on Saturday.
22:12 It was a debut to make you think, 'This is a player I want to keep an eye on. This could be a really good player here.'
22:20 That was a massive positive.
22:23 Adam Radulovic, the new centre-forward, came on for the last half hour and forced a good save from Ortega.
22:29 That was a tick in the box in terms of his confidence and his teammates' confidence in him.
22:36 Brodie Spencer, who I thought looked quite good for the brief spell he had under Mark Fodringham last season,
22:42 came back from alone at Motherwell and he really looked good at right back.
22:48 Obviously, any defensive job is difficult against Manchester City, but he stuck to the task quite well.
22:55 Again, it looks like another player who will strengthen that squad.
23:00 I thought Saba Thomas did a really good job.
23:04 Being the lone centre-forward in a team that does that much defending is always going to be difficult.
23:09 He did a really good job of using his pace to cause Ruben Diaz problems.
23:16 He had a good one-on-one chance, which to be honest he probably should have put away, but nevertheless got that chance.
23:23 I think there were lots of things for Huddersfield to be positive about.
23:27 As we always say, positivity means nothing if you don't back it up in the league games.
23:35 Plymouth have the feel of a really big game for Huddersfield.
23:39 I think in all fairness you would come away from that trip to the Etihad if you were a Huddersfield fan.
23:47 Surprisingly positive about them, I would say.
23:51 Yes, I totally agree with you, Stuart.
23:56 The big games, the Plymouth game, you'll come fourth round weekend.
24:02 Another huge game for Huddersfield going to QPR, so they're the massive priority for them.
24:09 There's got to be context when, especially championships sides play Manchester City.
24:18 I've done a fair few of them over the last decade or so.
24:24 They're an extraordinary side, aren't they?
24:28 I look at some of the games, they've put five past Barnsley, four or five past Leeds.
24:34 I remember once they put seven past Rotherham.
24:37 I think they've done the same to Sheffield Wednesday.
24:40 In normal circumstances, losing five-nil, you'd think on the outside, "Oh, what's happened there?"
24:48 But you just can't look at that when you're taking on Manchester City, who are an extraordinary front-line gifted side.
24:57 Stuart's right to say that some individual positives there.
25:03 Matos, I'm not the part by the sounds of it, Brodie Spencer had done well at Motherwell.
25:10 That's a tick in the box.
25:13 For championship managers, when you go into the best and City are the best,
25:21 you've got to take those individual positives.
25:27 You look at the game against Leicester as well for Huddersfield, with respect,
25:31 they're in a bit of a different level to town as well.
25:36 I can't see the four goals there.
25:39 Leicester and Manchester City quite simply aren't games that you can gauge Huddersfield Town on.
25:45 The huge games coming up are Plymouth, which looks a massive game in the context of the season.
25:52 QPR a little bit further down Sheffield Wednesday as well.
25:57 They're the games that matter.
26:00 I'm sure that confidence hasn't been hit in any way, shape or form by the last two results.
26:09 There are some good professionals in that dressing room at Huddersfield.
26:13 They'll know which are the games that matter and they've got to perform and get over the line.
26:21 In terms of league form, it's been relatively promising, hasn't it?
26:27 Of late, Town beat Blackburn, very unlucky against Middlesbrough, played well, didn't deserve to lose.
26:34 Even accounting for the last two results, they should be going into the Plymouth game in a decent place.
26:44 Obviously, Matos has made a decent debut and the Serbian lad brought in Isho Glasur from the bench.
26:55 So, yes, they're still in a decent place, I think.
26:59 Whilst you can write off results against Leicester and Man City, it doesn't justify it to Huddersfield.
27:07 You've got other clubs across the divisions in similar positions.
27:12 It's important that you take something from those games.
27:15 You're unlikely to take a result, but you need to take something.
27:19 If you look at City's goals, the first couple came through lucky bounces.
27:25 The third one came from a deflection. I'm not, in a million years, pretending that City didn't deserve to win comfortably.
27:33 But nevertheless, they didn't give them the goals. They were made to work hard for that.
27:39 You've just got to remember this is Manchester City.
27:44 This is Manchester City resting players and still bringing Kevin De Bruyne and Jeremy Docku off the bench.
27:51 This is a pretty special football team.
27:54 If you can go out of there with your heads held high, it's depressing that you can even say that a 5-0 defeat is acceptable.
28:03 But that is the reality of the gulf between where Manchester City are and where the bottom of the championship is, I'm afraid.
28:10 Now we turn our attention to the League Cup semi-final, which saw Middlesbrough play out a 1-0 victory when they faced Chelsea in the first leg.
28:21 What were your thoughts on the game and how much of a boost will this be to the team when they return to League action when they face Millwall Leon?
28:31 Yeah, it was a privilege to be there. It was one of the great riverside nights.
28:39 I've been in one or two of them. Liverpool in the semi-finals of the League Cup many, many moves ago. It shows how old they are really.
28:52 And some of the European ones against Stouffer and VAR.
28:58 It was a great night in a different way. It was an occasion where they had to draw strength from adversity.
29:09 We've spoken several times about the injuries at Middlesbrough this season.
29:16 I found it quite ironic afterwards when the journalists were talking to Pochettino about the problems he's had in having to contend with injury issues.
29:27 I thought you should be posing that question to Michael Crick. He's had double-figure absentees for most of this season.
29:37 They went into the game with 11 out, not just with injuries but with the players on international duties.
29:44 Morgan Rodgers was suspended. Greenwood was cut-tied as well.
29:49 But there were 11 out after 20 minutes. Two injuries to the main striker and the left-back.
29:59 They had 13 players out after 20 minutes of the game. Many sides would have panicked and felt sorry for themselves.
30:07 But as is Carrick's way, they kept calm and kept their heads.
30:15 Chelsea had a hell of a lot of the ball. I thought tactically they were very smart at Middlesbrough.
30:26 They were disciplined and had a little bit of luck. Cole Palmer is an excellent player and will be a big one for England in years to come.
30:37 He left his shoes at home a little bit but Burra took the chance. It was a great goal from Hayden Hackney.
30:45 Good work from Isaiah Jones, a Levi Cole we know about from these parts.
30:53 A very good young player but I'm not sure whether he's a left-back. He looks to be more of a centre-half for me.
31:00 He struggled and the goal came from down his side. In the second half, Middlesbrough's plan was to block the spacers, get men behind the ball and then focus on the counter.
31:16 It worked really well and they played well in the FA Cup game on Saturday against Billhead. They were unlucky to lose that at the death with a deflected shot.
31:28 They could easily have got a replay there. Hats off to Michael Carrick and his players given what they had to contend with in terms of the calibre of opposition and the number of absentees.
31:45 Historically, they've got a rotten record against Chelsea as well. I'd still say that Chelsea are favourites overall in a two-legged tie with the second leg to come at Stamford Bridge.
31:59 Middlesbrough fans would certainly take what happened on Tuesday night. They'd lost the last nine games and not even scored a goal against Chelsea.
32:16 They managed to get that monkey off the back and not just do that but get a first-leg advantage even though it's a slender one. I think it was a night that reflected well on Michael Carrick and his players.
32:24 From my perspective, it was one of those games you watched on television. My overriding thought was, "I wish I was there." That lucky Gately and Wubbshall being at that game.
32:38 When the riverside is really rocking, it's such a great place to watch football. Carrick said before the game that they would need the help of the fans.
32:53 They needed it even more when those players went off early. You could see the fans understood that and really played their part and got behind the team.
33:07 There's a lot of nonsense spoken about 12th men and all that sort of stuff but that really was an occasion where Borough needed that help. They gave it really impressively.
33:20 I think the fans take a huge amount of credit for that performance as well because Borough really did have to dig deep.
33:30 It must be difficult without that encouragement from the supporters to just go that extra mile but they really did.
33:40 As Leon said, they rode their luck a little bit but they rode that luck after those injuries. They earned it with the intelligence of the way they played.
33:52 Yes, Chelsea will be the favourites in the second leg but Chelsea will be under huge pressure as well. They have been all season.
34:01 If Chelsea don't win this game, there will be people writing off the season as an absolute failure. There will be no doubt mutterings about Pochettino.
34:12 That really is something that Middlesbrough can play on. We know that for all their talent and the hundreds of millions of pounds they've spent, it's quite an inexperienced Chelsea squad.
34:24 If you can play on that pressure element and just not concede in the first half, for example, it's one of those where you'll just have to take it section by section.
34:36 I think Danny Cowley, when he was at Lincoln Manor, was a Lincoln manager famously chopped up an FA Cup tie.
34:43 Can we get to 15 minutes without conceding a goal? Can we get to 30? And so on and so forth.
34:48 It might even have been 10-minute sections. I think Middlesbrough have to think that way and just pile the pressure on.
34:54 The big advantage that Middlesbrough had playing at home in the first leg, if they can go to London and do that, then suddenly Chelsea will have home disadvantage.
35:06 Because there will be a nervousness and a frustration in the stands and that can really work to their favour.
35:13 So I think on the back of what was, again, without wanting to sound patronising, an encouraging defeat against Aston Villa in the FA Cup,
35:25 I think it's been a really good week for Middlesbrough in terms of just building up belief, as I said earlier, giving fans something to look forward to.
35:35 And hopefully this is something that can bleed into the league form. They could really do with a few extra bodies,
35:42 whether that be the physios pulling off a couple of miracles or more likely some business in the transfer market.
35:50 But yeah, what a great thing to look forward to. Great timing with it being the 20th anniversary of the League Cup.
36:01 And it was great to see, I say, the Riverside at its best so soon after the death of Keith Lamb who obviously did so much along with Steve Gibson
36:11 to make that place and that football club what it is.
36:15 Yeah, it could be interesting for the second leg as well, Stuart. Lewis O'Brien was back on the bench.
36:22 He's been out for a fair old spell with an ankle injury. So, by the time the second leg comes around, he might be back in the fray.
36:33 Carragher was making noises about Marcus Forss as well. So, that means there could be two big players for Middlesbrough.
36:41 I think Stuart's right to talk about the passion of the crowd. They sensed it was difficult in the second half
36:50 and really had the players' backs. But I think you can't be discounted as well.
36:56 The number of players who played in different roles. Hackney ended up playing on the left of a midfield three and showed his versatility.
37:06 Engle, who was one of many heroes at the back, he started out on the left side of a three before Buddha went back to a four.
37:20 Van den Berg, who really sees himself as a centre-half if you ask him. He did well at right-back.
37:32 So, players are showing their intensity but also tactical intelligence. That's really encouraging as well.
37:45 They've given themselves an inkling of hope. Hopefully, there'll be one or two more additions.
37:55 It looks like Lou Kaling's going to come in from Leeds United. That would be a suit acquisition on that side of defence to add some experience.
38:07 I still think they do need another striker. I know they've brought in another attacking midfielder in fitness who I've liked as a player for the last year or two.
38:21 He'll add to the mix. Obviously, with Lattilaffe as well, he came off early on against Chelsea.
38:27 He's only just back from an injury as well. They still look very light up top.
38:33 Josh Cobham gets injured as well and he's had a bit of a hernia issue this season as well.
38:41 Being sort of picky, I'd like to see them get another forward in. One thing's for sure, Carrick certainly won't panic.
38:52 He's had players out all season. He's come up with a plan and he's backing to do the same again.
38:59 Finally for this week, we will turn to Leon for his Team of the Week before we go to Stuart for his Player of the Week.
39:08 Leon, which team has caught your attention this week?
39:13 It's probably Split really. You've got to say, given the way they performed on Tuesday night, it's impossible to ignore Middlesbrough really.
39:25 Aiming to become the first EFL side since Bradford City to reach a cup showpiece. I'm not going to put a load of pressure on the backs,
39:39 but there were elements that were akin to some of those nights with Bradford. It was an all-for-one, one-for-all attitude.
39:49 The crowd were magnificent. It was encouraging in that regard and a bit of a rewind, but they've got a hell of a task to navigate if they are going to get into the final.
40:04 The last two games both televised have painted Middlesbrough in a good light and that's been good to see.
40:12 You know, Sheffield went as well. I know they had Cameron Dawson, an outstanding game against Cardiff with a penalty save.
40:22 A sick winning in nine games in all competitions. You can feel like something special is happening there.
40:36 I'd probably share the prize between Borough and Sheffield Wednesday, if you like, but with probably an honourable mention to Leeds United in this batch as well.
40:48 Stuart, which player has caught your eye?
40:53 We've mentioned a couple over this podcast. I was really impressed with Abraham O'Do playing for Harrogate the other day.
41:01 You can't ignore a player who scores a goal like Patrick Bamford does in a bright pink kit.
41:09 Let's talk about Leaping House. He's had a very good week. I was really pleased to see Willa Sulu rewarded after some good performances with his first couple of goals for Sheffield United.
41:24 I think it was important that James McAtee got a couple too, so I think they'd all be contenders.
41:29 Since we started doing this feature, Sheffield Wednesday have featured quite a lot. I'm going to go to them again, to be honest with you.
41:39 Let's be honest about it. Cameron Dawson has not had the best of seasons for Sheffield Wednesday.
41:44 I think the way that Danny Rowe asked him to play with his feet hasn't ebbed away a bit of his confidence.
41:53 I think it's affected him in other aspects. Let's be honest, the arrival of James Beeler will probably see him spend most of the rest of the season on the bench.
42:06 He's had a lot of criticism from Wednesday fans. He's been booed a few times at Healesborough.
42:14 I think that's really unfair because whilst it's true he hasn't played brilliantly, it's certainly not because he's not interested or not passionate about that football club.
42:28 He absolutely loves Sheffield Wednesday and he'd never go through the motions for them.
42:34 I was really pleased to see him save two penalties in the first 10 minutes of Sheffield Wednesday's FA Cup tie against Cardiff.
42:44 That could easily have gone the other way if he'd let them in.
42:49 Wednesday had a very comfortable 4-0 win and through to the next round. It was just good to see a lad who's had a difficult time of it pull off two saves like that.
43:07 We know what a good penalty saver he is. It was good to see him come to the fore. He's my choice of first player of the week.
43:17 YorkshirePost.co.uk
43:20 Yorkshire Football News
43:31 Many thanks to Stuart Rayner and Leon Wobbsall who will doubtless join us again soon for more discussions on the Yorkshire football scene.
43:36 But don't forget you can keep up to date with all the football news across Yorkshire and beyond by logging on to our website at yp.sport@nationalworld.com
43:44 Or if you search for Yorkshire Post Sport, Yorkshire Post Football or even Sheffield Sport on Facebook you can find us there as well.
43:50 If you have any questions for our writers you can get in touch using those various Twitter or Facebook pages or email us directly with a subject matter as Football Talk Podcast at yp.sport@nationalworld.com
44:01 As ever, many thanks for listening, look after yourselves and bye for now.
44:05 [Music]