McCarthy rescues Rovers against Boro

Blackburn 2 Middlesbrough 1

Benni McCarthy salvaged three more priceless Barclays Premiership points for Blackburn and heaped more away-day misery upon struggling Middlesbrough at sodden Ewood Park.

McCarthy directed a 74th-minute header past Mark Schwarzer to seal his 11th goal of a highly rewarding season just four days after grabbing the Boxing Day winner over Liverpool.

Boro had looked set to seize a point through Aiyegbeni Yakubu’s 61st-minute penalty after Shabani Nonda had fired Rovers into a ninth-minute lead with a delicious right-foot volley.

But in the end Gareth Southgate’s men were left pointless once again and requiring victory in their New Year’s Day showdown with Sheffield United to avoid the possibility of falling back into the drop zone.

Unchanged from their win over Liverpool, Rovers started confidently and looked the most likely to make light of the dismal weather conditions which left standing water down both flanks.

McCarthy was clearly in the mood to add to his crucial clincher against Rafael Benitez’s men, as his shot on goal was blocked by Andrew Taylor.

Boro, seeking to end a dismal sequence of away results which has hampered their attempts to get away from the relegation zone, were struggling to make an impression.

Morten Gamst Pedersen’s seventh-minute cross sailed inches too high for Nonda in front of goal but the Congolese star was in the right place to put his side ahead two minutes later.

Lucas Neill delivered a superb ball into the box which dropped invitingly for Nonda to hammer a first-time volley past Schwarzer.

Indeed, Rovers’ biggest early scare came when McCarthy hobbled to the sidelines for lengthy treatment after an aerial duel with Jonathan Woodgate, before treading gingerly for a number of minutes on his return.

Rovers were good value for their half-time lead in an inevitably scrappy encounter, with Rovers goalkeeper Brad Friedel enjoying a rare day of rest after his Boxing Day heroics kept Liverpool at bay.

It took Boro 23 minutes to fashion their first chance of note when Mark Viduka cut inside Andre Ooijer and found James Morrison, whose shot sailed high over Friedel’s crossbar.

Ooijer denied the impressive Lee Cattermole a point-blank scoring opportunity in the 27th minute after reacting quickest to Viduka’s dangerous knock-on in the box and prodding the ball out for a corner.

Yakubu finally forced Friedel to make a save 10 minutes before the break when he got the better of Ooijer on the edge of the box, but his shot lacked spark and flew into the goalkeeper’s hands.

The visitors continued to find themselves frustrated after the break, and were reliant on Woodgate to superbly cut out shooting chances for McCarthy and David Bentley.

Pedersen rode his luck to almost fashion a shooting chance in the 54th minute after Tugay’s cross-field pass had clattered off Andrew Davies in the Boro box.

But Boro drew level from the penalty spot in the 61st minute after Ooijer was penalised for hauling down Emanuel Pogatetz, and Yakubu stepped up to fire the equaliser low to Friedel’s right.

Moments later referee Martin Atkinson waved away Rovers’ appeals for a penalty at the other end, ruling Neill had deliberately gone to ground under pressure from Pogatetz.

With Boro brimming with belated confidence, Yakubu fired a solid header straight at Friedel from Morrison’s dangerous right-wing cross in the 70th minute.

Suddenly Boro looked the most likely to seize the three crucial points with Cattermole clattering a long-range effort inches wide of Friedel’s left-hand post.

But they reckoned without the excellent McCarthy, who rose highest to meet Robbie Savage’s precise ball into the box and head the ball past Schwarzer to further ease his side’s relegation worries.

With Boro pushing to get back into the match, Rovers had chances to extend their lead on the counter-attack and Nonda hit a rising shot over the crossbar five minutes from time.