THE key stats and moments from the game against Boro.
ROVERS:
BRAD FRIEDEL: A virtual bystander all afternoon. Had to make a couple of smart saves but everything he does inspires confidence...7
LUCAS NEILL: Looked fresh after missing the West Ham game through suspension. Strong defensively and tried to get forward whenever possible...7
JAY MCEVELEY: Easily his best performance in a Rovers shirt so far and could have grabbed his first goal as well with a thunderous shot....8
NILS-ERIC JOHANSSON: Looks far more comfortable in the centre than he does on the left, both positionally and in terms of his distribution....7
MARTIN TAYLOR: A commanding display from the giant defender as Boksic and Maccarone barely had a sniff up front....7
GARRY FLITCROFT: Put himself about with typical gusto, especially in the second half when Rovers were on top....7
NEIL DANNS: Given a great chance to shine but struggled to get into the game as the whole team looked below-par in the first half....6
DAVID THOMPSON: Gives everything for the cause whether he's in tip-top form or not....7
TUGAY: Grew stronger as the game wore on, especially once the gaps started to appear in midfield....7
ANDY COLE: Looked sharp as a tack in and around the box and he was only denied a goal by a couple of sharp saves from Schwarzer...8
DWIGHT YORKE: His match-winning strike should do wonders for his confidence going into an important part of the season...7
SUBS: GILLESPIE...(for Danns, 46) 7
TODD...(for McEveley, 75)
OSTENSTAD...(for Yorke, 85)
NOT USED...DUNN, KELLY
OPPOSITION:
SCHWARZER...Prevented a pasting 7
QUEUDRUE...Sweet left-foot 6
PARNABY...Run of the mill 6
SOUTHGATE...Boro's best defender 6
EHIOGU...Only lasted eight minutes.
GREENING...Busy without being effective 6
GEREMI...Faded out of it 6
JOB...Posed no threat 5
WILSON...Bossed out of it 6
BOKSIC...Totally anonymous 5
MACCARONE...Expensive luxury 5
SUBS - VIDMAR...(for Ehiogu, 8) 6
NEMETH...(for Maccarone, 73) 5
WINDASS...(for Job, 79)
NOT USED...WILKSHIRE, CROSSLEY
STATS:
Goal attempts: Rovers 18 Boro 5
Shots on target: Rovers 7 Boro 2
Woodwork: Rovers 1 Boro 0
Offsides: Rovers 3 Boro 1
Corners: Rovers 5 Boro 2
Free kicks -Rovers 13 Boro 7
REFEREE...Mr D Pugh (Merseyside)
Bookings - Rovers: None; Boro: None. Sendings off - None
Ewood Park Att: 23,413
TIME FOR ACTION:
10 Brad Friedel makes an early save to deny Geremi
11 Andy Cole signals his intent with a shot which flashes inches wide
37 Alen Boksic's cross just evades Massimo Maccarone
40 Mark Schwarzer keeps out a shot from Cole
56 Lucas Neill ventures forward from the back but his shot is deflected inches wide
58 It's 1-0 to Rovers as Dwight Yorke pounces on a lucky ricochet to fire past Schwarzer
59 Jay McEveley nearly caps an excellent performance with a thunderous shot which strikes the bar
60 Friedel beats away a shot from Massimo Maccarone at his near post
66 Cole turns brilliantly in the box but Schwarzer then palms aside his curling shot
89 Schwarzer excels again with a smart stop to keep out a thumping free kick from Tugay
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