Emotional Rollercoaster

Another footbll post I'm afraid - it was the return leg of the UEFA cup quarter final last night, against FC Basel. Middlesbrough were 2-0 down from the first leg, which seemed a tall order to overturn, and I wasn't feeling very optimistic about their chances. The early stages of the game saw quite a few chances come Middlesbrough's way, but the ball wouldn't go in the net. As long as Basel didn't score things would be ok. So of course Basel scored. This made it 3-0 on aggregate, but crucially gave them an away goal. To win the game Middlesbrough would have to score 4 and not concede again - an almost impossible task. An equaliser on the night came 10 minutes later, so only 3 more to score in 60 minutes.... Half time saw the introduction of another striker, and a goal 10 minutes into the half started to give me belief that it could be done. The game was all one sided, but then all Basel had to do was not let another goal in, and they would progress in the competition. Then one of their centre halves got sent off - 11 vs 10 for the remaining 25 minutes, but still another 2 goals needed. The a wonderful strike saw Middlesbrough score another goal, 3-1 and only one more goal needed. Another striker came on the pitch, and in the very last minute he scored the fourth goal, so Middlebrough won 4-3 on aggregate and go through to the semi finals. My father introduced me to the pleasure and pain of following Middlesbrough when I was 6. The club do not have a long glorious history, in 1986 the club went bankrupt and the ground was locked. In the 20 years since the new owner has invested heavily - building a brand new ground and buying lots of world class players. 2 years ago the club won their first ever trophy, in 128 years of existence this was their pinnacle. It meant that the club entered European competition for the first time too, playing hugely famous and talented clubs. Last year Middlesbrough never even reached the Quarter Finals, now they are down to the last 4 in the competition and face a Rumanian team in the semi final. My dad died 13 years ago, and Middlesbrough were still struggling in the lower leagues. He missed out on seeing the new stadium, the cup win and the current European adventures. I wish he was still here to share the excitement that I currently feel