Filed under: Cardiff, Middlesbrough, Championship, Football, Match Reports
Cardiff blew their big chance to pile the pressure on Norwich in the race for the Premier League after crashing to a shock defeat.A nightmare start saw them fall three goals behind inside 21 minutes against a rampant Middlesbrough.
The dramatic reverse meant the Canaries would clinch promotion with a top-two finish if they could beat Portsmouth in a game that kicked off within minutes of the conclusion of Cardiff's loss.
But for Cardiff it was game they will wish to forget with the play-offs almost certainly the scenario for them this season.
Leroy Lita headed home Tony McMahon's cross inside three minutes and the shell-shocked hosts never recovered.
More dismal defending saw Barry Robson find acres of space to turn home Lita's cross with 13 minutes on the clock.
And their blitz continued as Richard Smallwood stunned the Cardiff City Stadium into silence when he hammered home Marvin Emnes' cross eight minutes later.
Cardiff improved after the break and missed a host of chances - but the damage was already done by a Boro side which had nothing to play for but pride.
REACTION:
Dave Jones apologised to the home fans, labelling his side's defending as "schoolboy standard":
"I can't answer what happened - we didn't turn up for 45 minutes. I didn't see this coming. The goals we gave away were schoolboy defending. It would be easy to character assassinate the players. But when the expectation was there we didn't deliver and it's as simple as that. We didn't perform and we apologise to all our fans for that. It's a big kick in the teeth and we have to dust ourselves down and go again."
On the nightmare showing:
"We know we didn't play anywhere near what we are capable of. We can normally score goals but we could have put a blanket over their goal. Nothing had changed pre-match - we did all the usual routines but I don't think the pressure got to them."
On his side's promotion hopes:
"Whether we have to go through the play-offs, we have to keep the belief alive. People talk about us choking, but it's not fair on the players. We will have to pick the players up and I will."
Tony Mowbray admits he doesn't want the season to end after his side maintained their impressive form:
"We are playing well at the moment. Everyone knows we have to cut our wage bill dramatically. We will wait and see what happens in the summer. But we have some talented players who are not affecting the wage bill."
On his side's win:
"What pleased me the most, as well as scoring the four goals, is keeping a clean sheet. I was aware that with the crowd here, if they got a goal back before half-time, it would have ignited them and given them an extra half a yard."
On the end-of-season:
"These days happen. I was manager of West Brom who were striving to get out of this league. The crowd are tight and nervous and every chance against you hits the back of the net."
WHAT IT MEANS: Everything that could have gone wrong for Cardiff did. They were left hoping Portsmouth could do them a favour if they were to remain in with a chance of a top-two finish. Middlesbrough are flying, with one defeat from their last 11 games, as they finally live up to their pre-season tag of promotion favourites.
CARDIFF 0 MIDDLESBROUGH 3 (Lita 3, Robson 13, Smallwood 21)
PLAYER MARKING:
Cardiff (4-4-2): Heaton 5; Quinn 5 (Chopra 72, 5), McNaughton 6, Keinan 5, Samuel 4 (Koumas 30, 5); Burke 5, Olofinjana 4, McPhail 5 (Blake 46, 6), Whittingham 6; Bellamy 5, Bothroyd 4
Subs not used: Bywater, Rae, Hudson, Parkin
Middlesbrough (3-5-2): Steele 6; McMahon 7, McManus 7, Williams 7; Hoyte 6, Taylor 7, Smallwood 7, Thomson 7, Robson 7 (Flood 86); Emnes 8 (Franks 62, 6), Lita 8
Subs not used: Smith, Haas, Kink, Halliday, Grounds
ATTENDANCE: 25,183
REFEREE: Graham Scott
NEXT UP:
- Cardiff v Burnley (away), Championship, 7/05, 1245 BST
- Middlesbrough v Doncaster (home), 7/05, 1245 BST
MAN OF THE MATCH:
Leroy Lita (Middlesbrough): Gave Cardiff a torrid time, scoring one and creating another. The striker, alongside Emnes, was a thorn in the home side's defence all game.
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Source: http://www.fanhouse.co.uk/2011/05/02/cardiff-0-middlesbrough-3-boro-run-riot-to-rock-bluebirds-prom/
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