We are facing Man. United in the “Theatre of Dreams,”
Where they’ve almost been unbeatable: at least that’s how it seems,
They are seen by so many as being almost peerless,
But the Boro must now set out to be totally fearless.

We lost two days ago to the Blues from the city,
So we need to get down now to the real nitty-gritty,
And after the first meeting: a great, four-goal thriller,
We’ll be all, “In The Mood,” like the marvellous Glenn Miller.

The opening minute saw a strong run from the Yak,
But Vidic then swept up this fine Boro attack,
The brilliance of Ronaldo was then swiftly on view,
One must admire his skill and then just utter “Phew!”

The Portuguese then laid one on especially for the ‘Roon,’
Woodgate’s intervention was again most opportune,
Vidic reached the corner: that man is certainly a threat,
Schwarzer saved it on the line but without breaking sweat.

The Ronaldo/Rooney duo: what a partnership they forge!
Were halted in their tracks by the Boro’s captain, George,
When Rooney’s shot deflected, his partner took it in his stride,
And with truly awesome power, flashed it only inches wide.

Boro’s play was risky and Alan Smith then caught us cold,
But thankfully young Taylor remained beautifully controlled,
He pushed it for a corner, with Wayne Rooney coiled to spring,
With our backs against the wall we must now give it everything.

When Xavier’s ball deflected, directly in the path of ‘Dook,’
A glorious chance developed, though ‘twas one he never took,
It should have been a goal and Viduka will well know it,
From sixteen yards or so he only screwed it wide, to blow it.

Arca gave the ball away and ‘handed’ it to Giggs,
Worried Southgate grabbed his bottle and took a few short swigs,
He needn’t have been anxious: Taylor saved the situation,
And Schwarzer urged his colleagues on to greater concentration.

The ever-dangerous Vidic drilled a ball out to the right,
Just perfect for Ronaldo who immediately took flight,
He mesmerised young Taylor, for whom the pressure is unending,
But then Woodgate saved the day with some dazzling defending.

Even Alan Smith hailed his former teammate’s skill,
And everyone thought Ronaldo was a cert to make the kill,
With Boro being pinned right back and playing ever deeper,
The mountain we’d to climb was suddenly looking so much steeper.

It seemed the world would end with Rooney one-on-one with Schwarz,
The big Aussie won again to leave Wayne feeling out of sorts,
The striker was clear favourite to score a great goal for his side,
But he met his match in Schwarzer and Wayne Rooney was denied.

I’d admit that we had rocked and been clearly second best,
Alhough we’d given everything and retain great interest,
But the tempo will be upped, with much more ammo being thrown,
So, if we are to win it, more adventure must be shown.

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That appeared to be the case as the game was then re-started,
But Downing missed a great chance, leaving Boro fans downhearted,
All that was required was a ‘simple’ side-foot finish,
Instead, he went for power and saw another chance diminish.

Similarly, Viduka went for power and also missed,
But we haven’t anyone better that we could possibly enlist,
The deadlock’s almost broken but once more Schwarzer saved our bacon,
Ronaldo thought he’d scored but, once again, he was mistaken.

And so, for Man. United, chances came: some heaven-sent,
The irascible Wayne Rooney was finally cautioned for dissent,
With the game at times near boiling, and Boro somewhat in a hole,
A change was made and Morrison was brought on for Cattermole.

United’s pressure mounted then some sloppy Boro play,
Set up again Wayne Rooney and he’s swiftly on his way,
He let one fly at Schwarzer and again he saw it parried,
Then Taylor got it clear when Wayne surprisingly then tarried.

Rooney had another chance and looked odds-on to score,
But Schwarzer pulled another stop from out the top-most drawer,
Then hands-on-head stood Rooney, thinking, “You’ve done me, pal, once more,”
And it’s looking ever-certain Rooney’s never going to score.

With some tempers running high and the game becoming heated,
There came that vital moment: were the Boro to be defeated?
A penalty was awarded, which the Boro lads found depressing,
And who’s again the fall-guy? There’s no prizes pal, for guessing.

Yes, again, it was Ronaldo, in the box like a gazelle,
Invited Woodgate’s challenge and then, yes, of course, he fell,
Penalty said the referee and that met with loud derision,
But, personally, I found it a totally right decision.

Sounds of “cheat” abounded but my friends, I am afraid,
Though of the slightest nature, some contact was surely made,
So, up stepped United’s hero, as calmly as you will,
To blast the ball past Schwarzer: Man. U. one and Boro nil.

With character now being called for and feelings running very high,
Boro found things harder and couldn’t manage to reply,
Then, in the closing moments, Ronaldo cruelly took the ‘peas,’
Until Morrison chopped him off, somewhere round about the knees.

Young Morrison, for some reason, had totally lost the plot,
He left the ref. no option and instant red was what he got,
And most totally deserved was my own personal view,
Though Rooney should have joined him and without further ado.

The ref. reached for his pocket then remembered where he was,
And chose to take no action, and perhaps it was because,
He feared for his safety: that perhaps he might be throttled,
Though of course I’m only joking, the decision was, for sure, then bottled.

So brave was Boro’s battle though the dream of Wembley ends,
But, of course, there’s always next time when, perhaps, we’ll make amends,
Our efforts weren’t sufficient and perhaps I might suggest,
Though it hurts like hell to say it: we were really second best.