The Boro Feel Good Factor

Middlesbrough Football Club have certainly created a feel good factor across Teesside this week. A number of commentators suggest that the Olympic feel good factor is good for business in the UK and hopefully our very own Teesside version from Friday's football match v Sheff Wed will have the same effect. A big thank you needs to go to Steve Gibson and all at MFC for Friday night's great event.

Let me be clear, football is not my favourite sport, it comes below rugby union, cricket and rugby league in my list of sports to watch BUT in terms of the Tees Valley and it's profile as a region the ONLY sporting club known by many outside of the region is Middlesbrough Football Club. Therefore MFC is very important to all of us working and running businesses here.

Having said footy's not my favourite, I was brought up as a Boro fan. My Dad was big footy fan, played at a reasonable level and even played for the RAF in a 1-1 draw with an England team. He, like me, was Boro born and bred. He watched legends such as Mannion and Clough before I was born. He took me to my first match at Ayresome Park, a 2-2 draw against Sunderland in 1971 when I was 7 years old. Up to that point I was a fan of Dirty Leeds who were the top side in the country at a time when footy on TV was very limited. I was hooked (we were sat behind the goal in the East Stand and if he hadn't used his foot to block a Hickton shot that was destined for my face I might not have been).

Some great times followed, Jack Charlton's promotion team as a kid, as I got older and with most of my mates being footy fans there were great booze and footy trips away (Jamie Pollock's winner at Roker Park being a particular favourite), Juninho et al playing some sublime football, amazing Uefa Cup comebacks and more.

Once my son was old enough I switched from going with my mates and had a season ticket with my son, thus forcing him to change his very young allegiance from a TV Man Utd team to the Boro in the flesh and thus condemning him to a life of pessimism.

And then it all went wrong. I don't hate Gordon Strachan - I find him funny and the way he left Boro without compensation shows him to be a decent and honourable man - but I think he almost killed the club. It reached a point where I didn't even bother looking for the score on a weekend never mind not bothering with attending a match or even Ali's commentary on local radio.

Now that's changed. Mogga's in charge, local youngsters are playing and the players who aren't local have bought into what Teesside is about. Friend, Haroun and even the Mackem Leadbitter are all adopted Teessiders, one of us, following in the footsteps of adopted greats like Juninho and Mendi. It's a local club again and matters immensely.

Friday saw the club listen to the fans, the hard times we're having, and reduce prices for a match we could all watch on TV. There was a buzz on Teesside throughout the run up to the game, tickets started selling, people who haven't been for years came back, people brought their mates - it was like the Olympic buzz but for our own team and our own area. And what a performance, the team were fantastic, pride, passion, team spirit and skill - what a night.

Everyone is talking about it, local pride and belief in the club, the players and ourselves  and our region plus a great showing on TV to the nation. The start of something great on and off the pitch? I hope and believe so (though I won't be at the next home match as it's England v Springboks on TV, I did say rugby union is my favourite sport and it is England). I'm still a part-timer but I've now been to 5 home games this season which is the most for many years.

A massive thanks to Steve Gibson, the players and all at the club - I spent many years at Ayresome singing "We Shall Overcome" and I really think we will - as the club will play a big part, along with SSI re-opening the steelworks, in the rebirth of Teesside.