The Twe12th Man Website

Go out there and show the fans you care ,you owe them!
Thursday, March 20th, 2008

Yet again we face another ‘must win’ game this Saturday. The 3 points at stake are massive to us, not so to Derby. If we get them, we would be, in my opinion, 1 more win from safety. The last 2 games have shown us that the squad does have quality, spirit and fight, things sadly missing from the Cardiff debacle.

This, of course, is the first home game since ’shambolic Sunday’ and I hope the crowd see it for its importance and not as a way to demonstrate their disgust at the FA Cup exit. That has been done already on the message boards, written media and across the airwaves. Saturday is the time to get behind the lads and win those 3 points. Saturday is also a time for Gareth to tell the players “go out there and show the fans you care ,you owe them!”

We all want Premier league football played at the Riverside next season so let’s pull in the same direction. Give the team your full vocal support on Saturday, sing your hearts out for the lads !!!!

Sporting Glory?
Monday, March 10th, 2008

An Opportunity that has to be taken!
Friday, March 7th, 2008

With the weekend almost upon us once again, the increased levels of butterflies in my stomach tell me that this one includes a big match for my team. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise, any FA quarter final is a huge match and this one is no different. The shape and size of the opposition is irrelevant but make no mistake this is a great opportunity which must be grasped with both hands. The minimum on offer is a first appearance at the new Wembley, a decade after the last time a huge chunk of the population of Teesside de-camped to the old version. The twin towers and to a great extent the old magic may have gone but the new Wembley is a fantastic modern stadium which I’m sure will bring shiver down your spine much like the old place did. The maximum, well the sky really is the limit and next season we might not be spending our Thursday evenings watching other teams struggle in European competition.

Many have told you that we have been lucky with our draw to this point and I do not think it is worth denying that, but that is what cup competitions are all about and many Premierleague teams have fallen at easier hurdles than Bristol City and Sheffield United away. In fact Bolton, West Ham and Man City were all in this quarter of the draw and I’m sure the fans of all three would bite your hands off to be in the position we are in now.

Although there is still a lot of work to be done before walking down Wembley way becomes a reality, this is really an opportunity that has to be taken. To be honest we’ve been more workmanlike than spectacular during this cup run, but we’re still in there fighting and as they say “you’ve got to be in it to win it”. Saying that the display at Bristol City was a pretty damn good away performance to a team flying high in the Championship, capped by a Beckenbauer moment from David Wheater. And if we’d taken just a few of the golden chances we created against Sheff Utd in the replay we’d have been home and dry by halftime. Would that have made it more or less boring to the BBC’s “football experts” I wonder?

And now for Cardiff and a visit from the boyos from the “Land of my fathers”, once again mid-table Championship with stuttering league form, but again with a proven goalscorer meaning any slip could well be punished. Welcome back Jimmy! Thanks for two fantastic seasons, your goals will live long in the memory, especially for myself the header in the Stadio Olympico that sent the traveling army into minutes of crazed celebration. I’m sure a great reception will await you at a full Riverside.

It is another match where no complacency can be afforded by players and fans alike, treat our visitors with the respect any quarter finalists deserve but make sure they are soundly beaten on the pitch and on the terraces. We need the atmosphere back to the levels of the Sheff Utd replay, not the library is was last Saturday, let’s raise the roof and ensure that home advantage is made to count. Bring all your Teesside passion and pride to Riverside on Sunday and make sure that we really are the 12thman! Cheer the lads on to victory and we can really start dreaming. ERIMUS

Twe12th Man Deal Boro a helping hand with Cardiff FA Cup Card Trick
Wednesday, March 5th, 2008

Middlesbrough Independent Fans’ Group, The Twe12th Man – with the help of a 35,000 full-house at The Riverside – aim to inspire the Boro back to Wembley after a 10-year absence with another spectacular card display before the FA Cup Quarter-Final with Cardiff City on Sunday (March 9th).

Following on from two previous landmark displays against Steaua Bucharest in the UEFA Cup Semi-Final and the ‘Reborn’ message marking 20 years of the ‘new Boro’ against Chelsea last season, the fans’ group are keen to further develop their growing reputation as terrace innovators with another poignant message to the team and the watching football world ahead of another huge occasion for the club and fans.

The subliminal and striking message of ‘SPORTING GLORY’ on a backdrop of red, with the famous Boro white chestband, was chosen from a shortlist devised by the group after consultation and will be executed in front of the watching millions at home and around the world using almost 6,000 red, white and blue cards at Boro’s North Stand ‘kop-end’ as the team run-out to Pigbag. Geoff Thomas, Event Co-ordinator and the principal designer of the huge display offered an insight into the inspiration behind the SPORTING GLORY message.

“Collectively, the group were desperate to make an impact on behalf of Boro fans for this game and a card display satisfies all the criteria the group want to achieve in making a bold statement of intent, whilst at the same time hopefully inspiring a passionate backing for the team. In the modern cosmopolitan climate where the ‘powerhouse’ clubs regularly adopt an arrogant and often disrespectful approach through the fielding of ‘sacrificial’ weakened teams within domestic competition, in favour of the financial riches offered by even limited achievement within premier European club competition, we felt it appropriate to use the live stage to re-affirm the very ethos of our club away from the modern day financially-driven rewards of underachievement and deliver a strong reminder to the football world that as a club, Boro and their fans uphold in every way, the traditional sporting virtues of the English game.

‘SPORTING GLORY’ achieves this perfectly and positions the groups standpoint alongside the very words of our leader Steve Gibson during an interview before the the clubs first appearance in a European club cup final – the UEFA Cup against Seville in Eindhoven in 2006. Whilst the Twe12th Man remain conscious and sympathetic towards the club’s need to keep pace with market forces within the modern game, the group are also mindful of the need to remind fans – young and old – that football IS above all, about winning – and winning with honour.” Geoff explained.

In achieving our collective goal, the Twe12th Man urge North Stand fans to be in their seats earlier than usual and in good time for the pre-match display on Sunday. We need nothing less than 100% participation if we are to carry this off and show the world how passionate we are about our club. The group also urge fans to get involved on an individual basis as an extension to the groups activity. Bring your scarves, your flags and your banners and join the North-East’s most passionate and innovative fans in turning the Riverside into a cauldron of positive tribal energy. It is time to make that difference.

“We have unfinished business with the FA for sure, and Wembley beckons for another Semi-Final (and that debate is for another time). But for now, WE WANT THIS CUP AND WE WANT IT BADLY.”

Fans interested in volunteering to help with setting-out before the game, should contact the Twe12th Man via email at contactus@twe12thman.co.uk where they can leave their name and a contact telephone number.