In the first of a three-part series looking at how our biggest teams have fared this season, Chief Sports Writer Scott Wilson assesses the 2014-15 campaign from a Middlesbrough perspective

SO near, and yet ultimately still so far away. Middlesbrough have just enjoyed their most successful season since dropping out of the Premier League in 2009, yet once August rolls around, they will start in the same position they have inhabited for the last six seasons. You have to go back to the early 1970s to find the last time the club endured such a lengthy spell outside the top-flight.

In the cold light of day, therefore, and with Wembley memories fading, the season must be regarded as a failure. Boro boasted one of the strongest squads in the division, topped the table as recently as early April, and yet still fell short.

Their hopes of automatic promotion vanished as Dimi Konstantopoulos disappeared upfield at Craven Cottage – although, to be fair, the damage had already really been done by the heavy away defeats at Bournemouth and Watford – and their play-off hopes were extinguished in the space of three whirlwind minutes as Cameron Jerome and Nathan Redmond found the net at Wembley.

In the majority of the defining matches, when they faced their promotion rivals, Boro were second best. There wasn’t a lot separating them from the three sides that will be playing in the Premier League next season, but in the final reckoning, it was enough.

And yet it would be grossly unfair to write off the last nine months as nothing more than an opportunity missed. After a lengthy period of stagnation under both Gordon Strachan and Tony Mowbray, there is a vibrancy to Middlesbrough that has not been apparent since the end of the last top-flight era.

Aitor Karanka’s work during his first full season has resulted in the bar being raised across the board. The standard of the squad has undoubtedly improved, and Boro’s first overseas head coach has developed a brand of high-intensity, attractive football that is allied to a forensic degree of organisation and a powerful team ethic.

Performances such as the play-off semi-final win over Brentford or last December’s resounding away win at Millwall were as good as anything a Boro side has produced for many a year, and while Riverside attendances might have remained disappointingly low for the majority of the campaign, there has been plenty of evidence in the last couple of months to suggest that the stay-away supporters have at least been persuaded to reengage with the club. Convincing them there is more to football than a day out at Wembley is one of the biggest challenges facing the Teessiders as they prepare to head into next season.

Assembling a squad that is better than the one that fell short this time around is another key task, and if Karanka gets his way, the vast majority of the building blocks will be in place by the time the new season begins in just 72 days time.

Inevitably, much of the focus on Boro’s failure to achieve automatic promotion this time around has centred on the events of the last few weeks, but it is just as relevant to look all the way back to last August in an attempt to uncover what went wrong.

Three of Middlesbrough’s first five league games ended in disappointment, with back-to-back home losses against Sheffield Wednesday and Reading following hot on the heels of a 1-0 defeat to Leeds at Elland Road. Nine points spurned against teams that finished in the bottom half of the table.

The fact that Patrick Bamford and Jelle Vossen arrived so late in the day clearly didn’t help, although if you’re going to construct a squad that is heavily reliant on loan players, you’re always going to be vulnerable to the whims of the teams you’re signing them from. That is something that will have to receive considerable thought as Boro pull together a recruitment plan for the next 12 months.

That said, however, it is to the Teessiders’ credit that the majority of the signings worked. Bamford and Vossen were hugely influential in the attacking third, while fellow loanees Ryan Fredericks and Tomas Kalas also made a positive impact at the other end of the field.

Adam Clayton’s summer capture from Huddersfield Town was an inspired decision, and while Kike’s form dipped as the season wore on, his performances in the first half of the campaign were a major factor in Boro hauling themselves into a position where they were briefly able to top the table in the wake of December’s 2-0 win over Derby.

That result confirmed their status as serious promotion candidates, but while they were plenty of notable wins in the second half of the season, with the victories at Derby and Norwich proving especially impressive, Karanka’s side were never quite able to pull away from the pack. Their away form wobbled, perhaps because a lack of midfield creativity was always something of an issue, and with Bournemouth and Watford holding their nerve, a top-two finish proved tantalisingly out of reach.

Away from the Championship, the cup competitions provided some additional highlights, with September’s remarkable penalty shoot-out defeat at Anfield proving the precursor to an even more incredible day, when goals from Bamford and Kike secured a 2-0 win at Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium in the fourth round of the FA Cup.

Those games confirmed Boro’s ability to compete with the very best teams in the land, but Monday’s failure at Wembley means it will be second-tier sides visiting the Riverside again next season.

With Karanka’s stock rising, you suspect the Spaniard will not be prepared to hang around forever. Similarly, while Steve Gibson’s support remains unwavering, there will eventually have to be a limit to the chairman’s largesse if promotion is not achieved.

The last 12 months have seen Boro make huge strides forward; the target for the next 12 months has to be the successful completion of the job.

HIT OF THE SEASON

Patrick Bamford

A host of Middlesbrough players have performed superbly this season, with Daniel Ayala, Grant Leadbitter and Adam Clayton all meriting special mentions after hugely consistent campaigns. Patrick Bamford was Boro’s star turn though, with his 17 league goals seeing him crowned Championship Player of the Year. Sadly, getting him back for another season will almost certainly prove impossible.

MISS OF THE SEASON

Tomas Mejias





It is hard to claim that anyone has let themselves down this season, although Kenneth Omeruo’s lack of action was a surprise given how important he had been in his first season on Teesside. Tomas Mejias continues to struggle though, and after his hesistancy contributed to three early-season defeats, his only other start came in February’s 1-0 home defeat to Leeds.

GOAL OF THE SEASON

Jelle Vossen vs Millwall (December 6)

Boro fans waited four months to see Jelle Vossen break his goalscoring duck, but when his first success arrived at The New Den, it could hardly have been more impressive. Racing onto a long ball into the inside-left channel, Vossen lashed a dipping first-time half-volley into the far corner of the net. Twenty-three minutes later, and he had a hat-trick to his name.

MOMENT OF THE SEASON

The final whistle of the playoff semi-final

Winning at the Etihad was remarkable, but the high point of the season came as Boro’s play-off semi-final success was confirmed at a sold-out Riverside. The Teessiders were heading to Wembley after one of the most polished team performances of the campaign.

2014-15 RECORD

All competitions

P55 W31 D11 L13 F85 A45 (Win ratio: 56.36%)