HALIFAX TOWN.  The first ever meeting of our clubs took place at Halifax in an FA Cup First Round Tie on 24th November 1979, with Boro in their first season in the new Alliance Premier League (later re-named Conference) and in a steady mid-table position.  The Shay was a very different place in those days, of course, with a speedway track around the pitch and an "away end" which consisted of little more than a mound of dirty cinders.  Town manager George Kirby concluded his programme notes that day by writing: "I hope you have your rattles and hooters with you.  Let's have plenty of noise!"  How times have changed! The crowd of 3,778 saw a tense game with the Shaymen ending 2-0 victors over the Boro team of Livesey, Murphy, Fountain, H Dunn, Dixey, Marshall, HA Dunn, Donoghue, Gauden, Sellers and Boylan.  This result was in fact Town's best-ever result against Boro, as their other five wins over us were all by a single goal.
 
In our debut season of 1987-88 in the Football League under the management of Neil Warnock, we drew both our fixtures with Halifax, 1-1 at home with Simon Lowe getting the goal, and 2-2 away with Mitch Cook and Tommy Graham on target.  Cook and Graham are amongst a host of players who have appeared for both our teams at various times.  Others include Steve Norris, Mick Matthews, Steve Richards, Billy Ayre, Gary Brook, Paul Dobson, Stewart Mell, Paul Kendall, Ray McHale, Alan Kamara, Ces Podd, Mark Jules, Chris Tate, Matty Russell, Jason Blunt, Neil Redfearn and several of today's Halifax squad..
 
Boro's best performances against the Shaymen have been wins by three clear goals in 1990-91 and 1991-92, both here at the McCain.  George Oghani scored two in a 4-1 win on Boxing Day 1990 to add to goals from Andy Mockler and Lee Hirst.  On 28th March 1992 the 3-0 win was achieved through goals from Colin Marshall, Tommy Mooney and Simon Thompson.
 
In 1992-93, the season when Halifax were destined to finish bottom of the league and be relegated to the Conference, Boro completed a double over the Shaymen , 4-3 away thanks to two from Darren Foreman, and 2-0 here with a Mooney double. 
 
Town's first season back in the Football League after a five-year absence also coincided with Boro's last season up there, and our last ever away match in Division Three was at Halifax.  With Town pushing for a play-off spot and Boro in a desperate struggle at the foot of the league, the Boro team pulled off a marvellous 2-1 win on 9th May 1999 thanks to early goals from Graeme Atkinson and Steve Brodie which gave us renewed hope until Jimmy Glass Day.
 
When our teams renewed acquaintances in the Conference in 2002-3, Town did the double with a 2-1 win at the Shay (Simon Parke and Ryan Mallon on target, Paul Shepherd replying with a penalty) and a 1-0 win at the McCain thanks to a Kevin Sandwith goal.
 
In 2003-04 the Boxing Day clash at the Shay featured four red cards after a melee just before half time, and the nine-a-side game was settled with Christian Lee scoring after a goalmouth scramble.  Central defenders Jamie Dudgeon and Matt Redmile were amongst the players sent off.  The return game had an identical result - a 1-0 home win with the goal scored in the 74th minute!  - but this time Chris Senior clinched the points for Boro.
 
In 2004-05 we visited Halifax for our first away game of the campaign watched by 1,867 spectators. Mark Monington put the Shaymen ahead but Neil Redfearn blasted in a free kick to equalise.  A mysteriously-awarded penalty allowed Craig Midgley to win the game for Halifax late on.  At the McCain in March, a crowd of 2,109 saw Boro go ahead through Neil Bishop's first goal for Boro and a Chris Senior strike.  In injury time, two penalties were awarded and were converted by Neil Ross and David Reeves to end the game at 3-1.
 
On 26th November 2005 Boro's newly-signed midfielder Lee Fowler notched his first goal fro the Seadogs in a 2-0 win, with Ian Clark netting the other.  One month later, the final game between our clubs ended in a 1-0 win for the Shaymen.

HARROGATE TOWN met Boro in a league fixture for the first time in 2006-07. Town previously played against Boro Reserves in the Yorkshire League in the 1960s, and Boro had previously encountered Town's predecessors Harrogate AFC in the Yorkshire League in the 1920s.

The only first-team meetings of the two clubs prior to the Conference North season were in the FA Cup. In 1962-63 Boro beat Town 5-1 at the Athletic Ground, with goals from Eddy Brown, Peter Whyke, Alan Franks, a Tommy McQuaid penalty and an own goal. However in 2005-06 it was Harrogate's turn to come out on top in a 1-0 win at Wetherby Road in a game which signified Nicky Henry's demise as Boro manager.
On 11th November 2006 the teams drew 1-1 at the McCain after a late leveller from the penalty spot by Chris Thompson.  At Wetherby Road Thompson netted again as Boro took the points with a 1-0 victory.

HARTLEPOOL UNITED entertained Boro in an FA Cup tie as early as 1920, with Frank Johnson's goal insufficient to prevent the home team winning 4-1.  Fifty years passed before the FA Cup sent Boro to the dilapidated Victoria Ground again in November 1971, where, in atrocious weather conditions, Boro were thrashed 6-1.  Tony Lee scored for Boro, and one of the Pools goalscorers was former Boro star Kenny Ellis.

Boro's promotion to the Football League brought our clubs into regular opposition between 1987 and 1991, then again between 1994 and 1999.  In 1995 our clubs were paired with each other in the Coca Cola Cup First Round.  Boro won the first leg 1-0 thanks to a David D'Auria goal, but Hartlepool won the second leg 1-0 and extra time did not prove conclusive.  Boro therefore went into a penalty shoot-out for the first time, where after a thrilling contest Boro bowed out 7-6.

The best and worst results were both in the 1989-90 season - a 4-1 defeat at the Victoria Ground and a 4-1 win at the McCain with goals from John MacDonald, George Oghani (pen), Paul Dobson and Adie Meyer.

Our clubs' final meeting was in April 1999, a 3-0 win for Hartlepool as Boro hit an alarming run of five consecutive defeats which contributed more to Boro's relegation than anything Jimmy Glass achieved!

HAYES played Boro in the Conference between 1999 and 2002.  The first meeting was a 4-1 home win for Boro in September 1999, with Steve Brodie, Andy Morris, Darren Roberts and Andy Quinn getting the goals.  Another goal from Roberts earned Boro a 1-0 away win.  The following season it was Brodie who netted the vital goal for a 1-0 away win, and it became four wins in a row when Gareth Stoker and David Pounder scored in a 2-0 home victory.  Hayes turned the tables with a 2-1 win at the McCain Stadium in 2001-02, but Boro took three points from the final encounter with Karl Rose scoring twice to earn a 2-1 away win.

HEDNESFORD TOWN met Boro on four occasions in the Nationwide Conference between 1999 and 2001, and were drawn against each other in the FA Trophy in 2001-02..

The first ever meeting of our clubs was on 24th August 1999, which was Boro's second home game since demotion from the Football League.  The previous match had seen Boro trounce Yeovil 5-0, but a crowd of 2,198 saw a rather disappointing game in which Steve Brodie's goal earned Boro a 1-1 draw.  Later that season Boro won 3-0 at the Cross Keys with goals from Gareth Stoker, Chris Tate and Brodie again.

In 2000/01 Boro won the away game 1-0 with a goal from Paul Ellender, but our final home game of the season was an uninspiring 0-0 draw against the Pitmen. 

Boro knocked Hednesford out of the FA Trophy in 2001-02 with a 2-0 victory thanks to goals from Darryn Stamp and Darren Connell.

HEREFORD UNITED competed against Boro on thirty-four occasions.  The first ever game between our sides took place at Edgar Street on 21st October 1987 and marked the first Football League appearance of young substitute Craig Short.  Colin Russell scored the goal which earned Boro a 1-1 draw.  The Hereford goal was scored by player-manager Ian Bowyer, who was celebrating his 600th Football League game.  When the Bulls travelled to Scarborough for the first time in April 1988, two goals from Tommy Graham won the match 2-1 for Boro despite a reply from Steve Spooner.   Boro won 3-1 at Edgar Street in 1988-89 through goals from Steve Richards, Steve Norris and Mitch Cook. The Bulls however gained revenge for that defeat by winning 2-0 here. 
 
One Boro player who seemed to enjoy playing Hereford was Tommy Mooney.  He scored against them on his full debut in November 1990 in a 3-3 away draw and then twice in the last game of that season as Boro won the home game 2-1.  In February 1993 Mooney and Kyle Lightbourne scored the goals as Boro beat the Bulls 2-0.  Darren Knowles and Jason Rockett made their club debuts in our 1-0 win against Hereford at the start of the 1993-94 season.
 
October 1999 saw our first ever Conference encounter in a remarkable match at Edgar Street which finished 4-4, ex-Hereford player Gareth Stoker netting one of them and Marvin Harriott notching his only ever Boro goal!   Boro's best performance against the Bulls was a 3-0 Conference win here in 1999-2000 with David Bass, Gareth Stoker and Steve Brodie getting the goals. 
 
Boro have also had some bad days against Hereford of course, with none worse than the 6-0 away thrashing in 2001-02, in the days when it seemed that the club's days were numbered.  Later that season, the Russell Slade revival saw Boro earn three points in a 3-2 home win with Steve Baker and Ryan Sugden both getting their first goals for Boro.  
 
In 2002-03 we completed the double over Hereford for the only time.  Here at the McCain Boro won 2-1, David Pounder and Cleveland Taylor scoring for Boro with Paul Parry replying.   Earlier that season we had won 1-0 at Hereford with Pounder getting the goal but Shaun Rennison suffering his awful career-ending injury.
 
The following season the Bulls beat Boro 2-1 through a free kick from Michael Rose and a Danny Williams free kick which was touched in by Paul Parry.  Mark Quayle got Boro onto the scoresheet with a header from a Michael Price cross.  The return game was an exciting 3-3 draw.  Boro's scorers were Clint Marcelle, Glen Downey and Matt Redmile, with David Brown, Anwar Uddin and Steve Guinan scoring for the Bulls.
 
In 2004-05, a crowd of 2,874 at Edgar Street saw the home side gain a rather fortunate 1-0 win through David Brown's excellent header, whilst an uninspiring game here at the McCain ended 0-0.   The first game of the 2005-06 season was a sign up things to come, with Boro's pre-season optimism shattered in a comprehensive 4-0 win for the Bulls.  Our last ever meeting was on 7th January 2006, with Hereford winning 1-0 at the McCain Stadium.

HINCKLEY UNITED first met Boro in the 2003/04 season, in the Fourth Qualifying Round of the FA Cup. Boro were fortunate to gain a 3-1 win after a spirited Hinckley performance. The Boro goals were scored bt Scott Kerr (2) and Ashley Lyth.  This of course was the season when Boro went on to beat Doncaster Rovers, Port Vale and Southend United before narrowly losing to Chelsea.
 
Our teams then met in Conference North.  Hinckley visited the McCain on 2nd December 2006 and were soundly beaten 3-0 through goals from Lee Cartwright, Lee Whittington and Chris Thompson. The game at the Marston's Stadium on 17th February 2007 ended 1-1 with Thompson again on target.  Injuries and suspensions had hit Boro hard before this game, and Boro boss Mark Patterson came off the bench to fill a gap in midfield, thus making his first competitive appearance for three years.

HUCKNALL TOWN met Boro on two occasions as members of Conference North in 2006-07. Hucknall took the points with a 2-1 win at the McCain Stadium on 7th October 2006.  Boro had gone behind to goals from Christian Moore but stormed the Hucknall goal for much of the match with only Ryan Blott's header to show for it.  The Boro team was Aspden, Hotte, Beadle, Ingram, Cook, Thompson, Cartwright, Vermiglio, Thornton, Hackworth, Blott and the attendance was 833.

The return game turned out to be Scarborough Football Club's final match, despite Boro winning 1-0 and ending the season with only four away defeats - the best away record in the division. With Jimmy Beadle having departed to spend the summer in Scandinavia, and Lee Whittington and Darren Thornton missing through injury, Boro boss Mark Patterson had only thirteen players at his disposal.  The decisive goal came on 81 minutes, with a contender for "goal of the season" from Tony Hackworth who cut in from the left with a mazy dribble which beat three defenders before planting the ball past Smith for a goal which sent the Boro fans wild.

The Boro team in the club's final match was Wilberforce, Lyth, Davies (Dalton 46), Cartwright, Hotte, Ingram, Hackworth, Vermiglio, Blott (Amos 88), Thompson, Cook.  The attendance was 646

HUDDERSFIELD TOWN never played Boro in a League competition, although our Reserve and "A" sides were in the same competition in pre-war years.  The only major Cup meeting of our clubs was in the Coca Cola Cup in 1993-94.  After a gritty 0-0 draw at Leeds Road in the First Round, First Leg, Boro succumbed 3-0 at the McCain Stadium.  Boro had met the Terriers in 1988-89 on the Quarter Final of the Northern Section of the Sherpa Van Trophy and won 2-1 at Leeds Road through goals from Steve Adams and Gary Brook in front of a crowd of 4,665.  In the group stages of the same competition (though now renamed Autoglass Trophy) in 1991-92 Boro gained a 1-1 away draw with Mark Jules on target.

Our clubs met in various friendlies and in pre-season competitions such as the Yorkshire & Humberside Cup and the Yorkshire Electricity Cup, but there was a major milestone on 26th October 1970 when Huddersfield came to play Boro at the Athletic Ground for the official opening game of Boro's floodlights in front of 4,600 spectators.

HULL CITY memorably came to Boro's rescue when the club was in deep financial trouble in 1951 by sending their star-studded team including Raich Carter and Don Revie to play a fund-raising friendly at the Athletic Ground.  A crowd of 9,614 paid record receipts of £620 and enabled the club to survive. 
 
Our sides never met in a competitive first team game until an Autoglass Trophy game at Boothferry Park on 9th November 1993, which Boro won 2-0 through goals from Darren Davis and Mark Calvert.  The Coca Cola Cup paired our teams the following season, with Boro going through to the next round on aggregate after a 2-1 defeat in Hull and a 2-0 win at the McCain Stadium.  Ian Blackstone scored both the home goals, with Stuart Young on target at Boothferry Park.  In the Auto Windscreens Shield of 1995-96 the Tigers won 2-0 at Seamer Road. 

The first league meeting of our clubs came in 1996-97 in the Nationwide League Division Three.  Boro won the home leg 3-2, Gareth Williams, Andy Ritchie and an own goal completing the scoring.  Boro completed the double over the Tigers on the last Saturday of the season, with a 2-0 away win through Troy Bennett and Mark Wells.  Indeed this season it was a treble rather than a double, as Boro knocked City out of the Coca Cola Cup 5-4 on aggregate.  Tony Daws and Andy Ritchie earned a stalemate at Boothferry Park, and Boro edged through after home goals from Gareth Williams and two from Gary Bennett. 
 
1997-98 brought another cup encounter with Hull gaining a 2-1 home win in the Auto Windscreens Shield, having shortly beforehand thrashed Boro 3-0 in a league game.  Boro turned the tables at the McCain with a 2-1 win, Steve Brodie scoring and loan player Paul Conway netting from the penalty spot.

Boro's final league season saw two more meeting, a 2-1 defeat at the McCain and a 1-1 draw at Boothferry Park, Jamie Hoyland scoring both Boro goals.  The match at Hull set a Division Three attendance record with 13,949 at the game - way above City's ground capacity at the time but permitted by the local police after many thousands had initially been locked out of the ground.

HYDE UNITED first met Boro in 1962/63 in an FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round tie which had brought Hyde of the Cheshire League to face Boro who were then in the North Eastern League.  Boro edged through to the next round courtesy of a single strike from the prolific Alan Franks.
 
Boro and Hyde were both founder-members of the Northern Premier League in 1968, and Hyde did the double over Boro in our first season of league competition, 2-1 in both games.  The following season Boro put things right with a 3-3 draw at Hyde and a 3-1 win at home with Terry Melling, Alan Franks and Tony Lee on target.  At the end of that season, despite finishing 11th in the league, Hyde United resigned and returned to the Cheshire League.  Boro had ended the season in 4th place.
 
In 1986/87 Hyde visited the Athletic Ground in the short-lived competition named the GMAC Challenge Cup which involved senior non-league teams.  Boro came out 2-1 on top that night, thanks to goals from defenders Cec Podd and Graham Hartley.
 
After a gap of twenty years the clubs met again in Conference North in 2006-07 in a 1-1 draw at Ewen Fields. Ged Dalton was in the starting line-up for the first time, and indeed became Boro's youngest goalscorer since accurate records began. Dalton, at 16 years and 8 months, beat the record of Michael Coulson who had netted his first Boro goal as a 16-year-old against Tamworth in March 2005.  The final meeting of the clubs was on 23rd February 2007 at the McCain Stadium which Hyde won 2-1.

KETTERING TOWN met Boro twenty-four times in league fixtures.However our first ever meeting was in fact in the F.A. Trophy on 24th February 1979, when Boro (in the Northern Premier League at that time) visited Rockingham Road in the Trophy Second Round and were comprehensively beaten three-nil.  This still remains Kettering's best ever scoreline against Boro.

KIDDERMINSTER HARRIERS made the trip from the Midlands to the McCain on six occasions with results showing three Boro wins, two draw, and one win for the Harriers.
 
Boro were founder members of the Conference in 1979, whereas Kidderminster remained in the Southern League until winning promotion in 1983.  The first meeting of our clubs therefore took place on 10th September 1983 here at the Athletic Ground, when goals from John Hanson and Brendan Phillips earned Boro a 2-0 win.  The Boro side featured the likes of Neil Thompson, Mitch Cook and player manager John Cottam.  The return game took place on 12th November 1983, with Boro coming out 3-1 ahead thanks to goals from Hanson (2) and Thompson.  However Kidderminster still finished the season one point ahead of Boro in mid-table.
 
In the following season Boro made it three wins in a row by winning the home game 2-1 after goals from Trenton Wiggan and Marshall Burke.  This was the first game under Harry Dunn after Cottam's departure.  However it was fourth time lucky for Harriers when the teams met again on 29th December 1984.  Boro were fresh from a 5-1 win over Gateshead in a Boxing Day "local derby" but went down to a 3-2 defeat at Aggborough.  Boro's first goal was a rare contribution from full back Richard Dawson, with the second goal scored by that season's "player of the year" Marshall Burke.  The full Boro line-up was Crawford, Dawson, Dennis, Dunn, Thompson, Hartley, Sellers, Burke, Phillips, Wiggan, Bowman.  Kidderminster fielded Garner, Horne, Martin, McGowan, Jones, Woodall, Powell, Kavanagh, Davies, Tuohy, Gavin.  At this stage of the season Harriers were fifth in the league table, with Boro down in 16th.  By the end of the 1984-85 season, Boro had climbed to sixth, with Harriers in eighth place.
 
In 1985-86 there was an astonishing match here between our teams, with Kidderminster gaining a 5-3 win despite goals from Marshall Burke (2) and Neil Sellers.  This came less than a month after Boro had crashed 5-1 at Aggborough.  The Harriers were the Conference top scorers of that season with 99 goals taking them to third in the final placings.  Their team featured the likes of John Barton, Paul Davies, Graham Mackenzie, Micky Tuohy and the prolific Kim Casey who notched 36 league goals that season.
 
In Boro's championship-winning season of 1986-87, Boro did the double over Harriers, 2-1 at home and 1-0 away, with Phil Walker scoring all three goals.  The attendances were 1,538 here and 1,326 at Aggborough.
 
When Boro rejoined the Conference in 1999-2000, it was to be Kidderminster's turn to take the Championship.  In September Boro were defeated 2-0 away in front of a crowd of 1,784 (programme pictured alongside).  Kidderminster lined up with Tim Clarke, Andy Brownrigg (later to make three appearances for Boro in 2003-04, Scott Stamps, Paul Webb, Steve Pope, Adie Smith, Dean Bennett, Thomas Skovbjerg, Mark Druce, Ian Foster and Shaun Cunnington.  The Boro team was Andy Woods, Simon Betts, Mark Tyrell, Lee Sinnott, Shaun Rennison, Marcus Jones, Gareth McAlindon, David Bass, Steve Brodie, Scott Middlemass and Darren Roberts.  The return game in December finished goalless and was watched by 1,125 spectators.  In the final league table of 1999-2000, Kidderminster finished nine points ahead of Rushden & Diamonds who were to be champions the following year. 
 
Following Kidderminster's demotion from the Football League, the appeared at the McCain Stadium on 20th August 2005 and gained a 1-1 draw - Paul Foot hitting a late equaliser for the Seadogs.   The return game in January 2006 was a 2-1 Harriers win.  In between these games the sides had met in the FA Trophy at Aggborough, with the home side gaining a convincing 4-0 win.

KING'S LYNN opposed Boro for four seasons in the Midland League in the mid-1950s.  The League bosses must have considered this a local derby, as the first games took place on December 25th(!) and 27th 1954.  Both matches were home wins, 4-1 at the Athletic Ground with two goals apiece for Laurie MacKenzie and Ralph Pickard, but 0-1 in Norfolk.
Boro lost 1-0 at home early the following season, but the return game at King's Lynn produced a remarkable 8-4 win for Boro with centre-forward Alan Parkinson netting five of them!  In 1956-57 the Linnets got their revenge with a 6-1 home win, but in total the games ended in four Boro wins and four Boro defeats, with no draws.

KINGSTONIAN met Boro on four occasions, completing the double over the Seadogs in 1999-200 by scores of 2-0 and 1-0.  In 2000-01 Boro gained a 1-0 home win with Gareth Williams on target and drew 2-2 away with goals from Paul Ellender and Scott Jordan.

LANCASTER CITY met Boro regularly throughout the 1970s in the Northern Premier League.  In fact our teams competed 18 times, between 1970-71 and 1978-79.
 
The first ever meeting of our clubs was at the Giant Axe on 23rd January 1971. Boro won 2-1, thanks to goals from Kenny Ellis and Chris Dale in front of 550 spectators.  The first time we met here at the Athletic Ground was later the same season, on 10th March 1971, and again Boro triumphed 2-1 with Graham Potter and Jeff Barmby netting the goals.  The attendance was 2,154 on that occasion.
 
Throughout this period, Boro finished in a top five position in each season.  Lancaster's fortunes varied, but they were normally in a safe mid-table slot.  Their highest finish was 7th in 1976-77.  Of the eighteen games between our clubs, Boro won ten, Lancaster won three, and five games were drawn.  In 1978-79 Lancaster did the double over us.  Our final Northern Premier League meeting ended in a 3-1 home defeat, with Harry A Dunn netting Boro's consolation goal.  Our paths diverged in 1979 with the formation of the Alliance Premier League (later renamed Conference) taking the top teams - including Boro - out of the Northern Premier League.
 
The clubs were not to meet again until 2004-05 when we were paired together in the FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round.  Mark Hotte scored for Boro in a 1-1 draw in Lancashire, but Boro were stunned by a last-minuute Lancaster goal in the replay.  In 2006-07 we met again in Cup and league, in fact playing three games against each other within a ten-day period!  In Conference North the Dolly Blues came to the McCain and won 2-1, then returned a week later for an FA Cup game which finished one each.  Boro won the replay 2-1 with Chris Thompson and Ryan Blott scoring the vital goals.  Later in the season, with Lancaster in severe financial difficulties, Boro went to the Giant Axe and won 5-1 with Jimmy Beadle scoring his first two Boro goals.

LEICESTER CITY were the team for whom Colin Appleton appeared twice in FA Cup Finals at Wembley before returning to his home-town club to lead Boro to Wembley success in the FA Trophy.  However our clubs never competed against each other until 1996-97in the Coca Cola Cup.  The Foxes won the first leg 2-0 at the McCain Stadium and wrapped up the victory with a 2-1 win in the second leg at Filbert Street.  Andy Ritchie notched Boro's goal in front of a crowd of 10,793.

LEIGH RMI / HORWICH RMI.   The first time our clubs ever met was way back as 1928-29, in the FA Cup First Round, when Boro made a trip to Lancashire to take on Horwich RMI, with a crowd of 2,109 seeing Boro win 2-1.
 
We did not encounter RMI again until the end of the century, by which time the Railwaymen had moved their base to Leigh and had won the Unibond League to earn promotion to the Conference.  Our first meeting was at Leigh in August 2000, when a crowd of 836 saw two goals from Dave Ridings earn the home side a 2-0 win.  Two months later, our sides met in the FA Cup Fourth Qualifying Round at the McCain Stadium and RMI triumphed by four goals to three. In the return league fixture, a goal three minutes from time by Ian Monk cancelled out the goal scored in the first half by Shaun Rennison.
 

In 2001-02 Boro visited Leigh in the LDV Vans Trophy and lost to a "golden goal" penalty in extra time when Andy Woods was sent off.  A fortnight later we were walloped 5-2 at home by the Railwaymen, shortly before Malcolm Reynolds took over the club and started our revival under Russell Slade.  The five-goal humiliation was started by an own goal from keeper Paul Newton but was continued by Dino Maamria (2), Ian Monk and Tony Black.  Boro replied through Steve Brodie with his last ever goal for the club, and Stuart Elliott with his first - and only - Boro goal.

Leigh had become something of a "bogey team" for Boro, but now things began to change.  As Russell Slade masterminded the Boro revival, we travelled to Hilton Park in early April 2002 and gained a point with Karl Rose's late goal equalising the earlier strike from Michael Twiss.

Then, in 2002-03, Boro triumphed 2-0 in both fixtures, thanks to Mohammed Sillah and Bimbo Fatokun at home, and Gary Cohen and Cleveland Taylor at Leigh.
 
in 2003-04 Boro improved things even further, with a double of 4-1 wins.  On a November evening at Hilton Park, Wayne Maden put RMI ahead but some Ashley Sestanovich magic set up Karl Rose's equaliser.  After Leigh Walker had saved a David McNiven penalty, Boro hit three goals in the last fifteen minutes - two from Mark Quayle including a penalty, and one from sub Chris Senior.  In the return game in April, a goalless first half was followed by a frantic second half in which Tony Hackworth and Kevin Nicholson both marked their Boro debuts with a goal apiece.  Former Boro favourite Steve Brodie got one for the Railwaymen, but defender Gerry Harrison also netted - at the wrong end!  Karl Rose completed the scoring.
 
The following season, Rose was in the Leigh RMI line-up in a 1-1 December draw at Hilton Park.  Boro went ahead early on when Robert Gill scored after a Chris Senior effort had been saved.  But with the last kick of the game, winger Gary Williams hit the equaliser.  Boro won the home game 3-0 thanks to goals from Mark Hotte, Colin Cryan and Chris Senior.
 
The clubs came together again in Conference North in 2006-07, both games ending 1-1.  The Boro goal at Hilton Park was a cracker from Tony Hackworth, whilst the scorer in the return game - which proved to be Boro's last ever home game - was Jimmy Beadle.

LEYTON ORIENT were in Football League Division Four when Boro earned promotion to that division in 1987.  Indeed, Boro's first ever trip as a League club was to Brisbane Road - which ended in Boro's first ever defeat as a League club!  Neil Thompson's goal could not prevent the 3-1 defeat.  However when the London side made the journey tp Yorkshire it was Boro who came out 3-1 on top with Stuart Mell(2) and Tommy Graham earning the points.  The next game in the series was a 0-0 draw at Seamer Road, but Boro won 3-2 away with Paul Dobson, Gary Brook and Paul Olsson doing the damage.  In the final league table Boro missed promotion by one point in fifth position - one rung ahead of Leyton Orient whom Boro now faced in the play-offs.  The first leg at Brisbane Road ended 2-0 to Orient with a crowd of 9,298 in attendance.  The second leg was one of the most exciting and memorable games ever seen at the McCain Stadium, with Boro pulling Orient to shreds but only able to score once through Martin Russell and therefore going out 2-1 on aggregate leaving Orient to win the play-off Final and clinch promotion.
Our clubs were again in opposition between 1995 and 1999, with Boro completing a double over the Londoners in 1996-97.  In 1998-99 Boro lost their first three games of the season but then travelled to Brisbane Road and gained a remarkable 3-0 win with goals from Martin Russell, Steve Brodie and Liam Robinson.  However the final meeting of our clubs was on 21st April 1999 at the McCain Stadium, with Orient winning the game 3-1.

LINCOLN CITY first encountered Boro in an FA Cup Second Round tie in 1930-31, a remarkable game watched by 6,318 at the Athletic Ground.  Boro were 2-0 down after only five minutes and trailed 4-2 at the interval, but stormed back to win the game 6-4.  Boro were at this time in the Midland League, along with Lincoln City Reserves who ended the season well above Boro in the league placings.

When Boro became the first team to gain automatic promotion ot the Football League, it was Lincoln City who were the unfortunate ones to become the first team to be automatically relegated!  But after winning the Conference at their first attempt they were back the following year and entertained Boro at Sincil Bank in October 1988 in a game which finished 2-2.  The return game at Seamer Road was also drawn, but this time 1-1.  Boro's first League win against the Imps was on 1st January 1990 with Tony Fyfe and Paul Dobson earning a 2-0 win, and Lincoln had to wait until the following season to claim their first win against Boro with a 2-0 score at Sincil Bank.

The best and worst results against the Imps were games which ended 3-0.  George Oghani (2 pens) and Tommy Mooney earned that scoreline at the McCain in March 1991, but Boro succumbed by a three goal margin at Lincoln in March 1993.

The Imps earned promotion from the division in 1998, therefore the final game between Boro and Lincoln took place in January of that year and ended 2-2, Gary Bennett and Neil Campbell scoring Boro's goals.

LUTON TOWN were matched against Boro only once, in the Third Round of the FA Cup in 1937-38.  The game attracted an attendance of 11,162 to the Athletic Ground, which became Boro's highest-ever home crowd.  Luton were in mid-table in the Football League's Second Division, but Boro's Midland League side put up a great performance.  Boro went behind after 26 minutes but equalised on the stroke of half time through a tap-in from left winger Billy Varty.  Despite a number of close calls, Boro could not force the winning goal and the game ended 1-1.  Luton won the replay 4-1, with a crowd of 11,750 in attendance.

MACCLESFIELD TOWN were, along with Boro, founder members of the Northern Premier League in 1968 and our first encounter was a rather embarrassing 5-2 defeat at the Athletic Ground as the Silkmen stormed to the championship and Boro struggled to avoid relegation.  Boro had had a better day at the Moss Rose, however, with a 3-3 draw thanks to Ian Burden, Alan Wilcockson and Albert Broadbent.

The following season Boro won 3-2 in Cheshire thanks to goals from Alan Franks, Tony Lee and Graham Potter as the season boiled up to a fantastic climax with Macclesfield coming to the Yorkshire coast on the final day of the season for the game to decide the championship.  A crowd of 6,031 was a Northern Premier League record but the Silkmen edged the game 1-0 to win the title.

In February 1970 our clubs clashed in the FA Trophy.  Boro held Macclesfield - who had won the first ever FA Trophy final the previous year - to a 0-0 draw at the Moss Rose and looked to be heading for a replay win under the new Athletic Ground floodlights the following midweek, only for the Silkmen to snatch a late 3-2 win.  We met again in the Trophy two years later, this time Boro winning a home encounter 3-1 with strikes from Jeff Barmby, Gerry Donoghue and Mally Wright as Boro embarked on the campaign which was to see them pick up the Trophy at Wembley five months later.

Macclesfield's fortunes dipped in the late 1970s, and whilst Boro qualified easily for the new Alliance Premier League Macclesfield ended 1978-79 bottom of the NPL table despite drawing both encounters with Boro.

In 1987, as Boro clinched the Conference championship and promotion to the Football League, Macclesfield simultaneously won the Northern Premier League title to climb into the Conference which they eventually won in 1997 to earn equal status with Boro and renew acquaintances at Football League level.  The Silkmen in fact soared straight through Division Three by finishing in second place and therefore met Boro on only two occasions in the Football League.  Gareth Williams scored both goals at the McCain Stadium in a 2-1 Boro win, and the same player was on target from the penalty spot as Boro went down 3-1 in the return game.

MAIDSTONE UNITED were, along with Boro, founder-members of the Alliance Premier League in 1979 and we competed against them each season until Boro's promotion to the Football League.

The first meeting was in fact on the historic first day of the new APL, on 15th August 1979, when Boro travelled South. By the time the Boro supporters' coach had battled its way through the traffic jams at the Dartford Tunnel, Boro were one down - and the Seadogs never looked like turning the game around, eventually losing 2-0.  Maidstone came up to the Athletic Ground in March and completed the double with a 2-1 win.  The fixture list sent Boro down to Kent on the first day of the following season as well, but this time Boro earned a 1-1 draw with a goal from Bob Gauden.

A third consecutive August trip to Maidstone at last brought a win in 1981, Colin Williams and Dave Bowman earning a 2-0 win.  Boro's first home win over Maidstone came at the fourth attempt, in 1982-83 with Bryan Magee and Pat Olney hitting the goals in a 2-1 win.  In the final game of that season, Boro suffered their worst Conference defeat when they went down 6-0 at Maidstone.  The Kent side were one of the few sides to get the better of Boro in the 1986-87 season, taking four points off the championship-chasing Seadogs. 

Two seasons after Boro's historic promotion to the FootballLeague, Maidstone won the Conference and joined us at a higher level - their first home game was against Boro (albeit at Dartford FC where they were now ground-sharing) and they celebrated with a 4-1 win.  In a curious twist of fate, Maidstone's final game as a League club was on 29th April 1991 at the McCain Stadium, a 2-0 Boro win with Chris Lee and Gary Himsworth getting the goals.  Although Maidstone finished out of the relegation zone (and in fact above York City, Doncaster Rovers, Halifax Town and Carlisle United)) they were in serious financial trouble and went out of existence just before the start of the following season.

MANCHESTER CITY and MANCHESTER UNITED did not play against Boro in a competitive match, but sent teams on several occasions to play friendlies at the McCain Stadium.  The last such occasions were Boro 1 Manchester City 4 on 27th July 1998 and Boro 3 Manchester United 2 on 28th July 2000.

MANSFIELD TOWN handed Boro their biggest ever post-war defeat when they visited the Athletic Ground for an FA Cup First Round tie in November 1952.  Boro were having a poor season in the Midland League - eventually finishing in 20th position - and the visitors from Football League Division Three (North) were 3-0 ahead after only eight minutes of the Cup tie.  The crowd of 6,535 saw the Stags net eight times without reply.

MARGATE played Boro six times.  The first-ever meeting of our teams took place at the McCain Stadium on 27th August 2001, with Boro in turmoil and facing serious financial problems. The Boro line-up on that day was:  Woods, Short, Fitzsimmons, Rennison, Fickling, Ingram, Blunt, Stoker, Stamp, Brodie and Pounder, with substitutes Burt, Sherwood, Atkinson, Turley and Newton.  A goal from Leon Braithwaite in the 69th minute was enough to give our visitors all three points.  In the return game that season between Boro and Margate at Hartsdown Park on 26th January 2002, as the Russell Slade miracle was in its initial stages, Braithwaite netted a penalty in the first half but Paul Shepherd equalised from the spot after 49 minutes to give Boro a share of the points.  That was to be Boro's only appearance at Hartsdown Park, as for the next two seasons the Gate were groundsharing at Dover.
 
In 2002-03 we gained a 3-2 win at home but went down 3-1 at Dover Athletic's Crabble in the final game of the season.  The home game had seemed to be heading for a comfortable victory, with Anthony Ormerod and David Pounder giving Boro a 2-0 half-time lead.  Although Sam Sodje pulled one back, Tommy Raw immediately put Boro two goals in front again.  With fifteen minutes to go, Terry McFlynn got Gate's second and set up a nervy end to the game.  At Dover, in a typical end-of-season game with nothing at stake, Boro never looked likely to get anything from the game.  Margate's goals were scored by Sam Sodje, Jean Michel Sigere and Leon Braithwaite, whilst Boro's only reply came when a long Michael Price throw was flicked on by Mo Sillah for substitute Gary Cohen to head home.

Early in the 2003-04 season  Margate visited the McCain Stadium and went away with a 1-0 win.  The away game was the final game of the season, again at Dover.  In what was to prove Russell Slade's last game in charge, Boro gained a splendid 2-0 win with substitutes Mark Quayle and Keith Gilroy getting the goals.

MATLOCK TOWN were adversaries of Boro's in the Midland League between 1963 and 1968, and although they did not make the initial list for the new Northern Premier League, they gained promotion to this league the following year.  Boro did the double over Matlock in the 1963-64 season, 4-2 at home (two goals from Alan Franks and one each from Barry Dunn and Joe Rose) and 2-0 away (one from player-coach Eddy Brown and another from Franks).  Boro finished above Matlockin each Midland League season.

Our first meetings in the NPL were also very successful for Boro, doing the double and scoring eight goals without reply!.  At Causeway Lane Tony Lee (2) and Harry Dunn earned a 3-0 win, whilst at home it was 5-0 with Kenny Ellis (2), Alan Franks, Tony Lee and Jeff Barmby hitting the net.

Our highest-profile meeting with the Gladiators was of course the 1975 FA Trophy Final at Wembley (see the "Wembley Years" section of this website). Our last meetings with Matlock ere in 1978-79, when Boro left the NPL to move up to the new Alliance Premier League - but Matlock did the double over Boro!

MIDDLESBROUGH have rarely met Boro despite being such close neighbours.  The North Riding Senior Cup has seen many encounters between our teams, but this normally involved one or both teams fielding a reserve or youth side.  There have also been the occasional friendlies, but the only major encounters at first team level were in 1890 and in 1994.  On 4th October 1890 Boro travelled to Middlesbrough for an FA Cup game and  were defeated 11-0.  In 1994 it was a Coca Cola Cup 2nd Round tie over two legs, with Middlesbrough winning 4-1 on both occasions.

MOOR GREEN played Boro twice, in 2006-07.  The first game was at the McCain Stadium on 28th August 2006 in a Conference North game.  Goals from Darren Thornton, Chris Thompson and substitute Ryan Blott earned Boro a 3-0 win watched by a crowd of 770. The return game was at Damson Park, Solihull on 9th April 2007, where Moor Green played having moved from their own ground The Moorlands. This fixture was the second-last home game to be played by Moor Green before they merged with Solihull Borough at the end of that season to form the new Solihull Moors FC.  Boro gained a well-deserved away win, although the Seadogs left it late before netting the decisive goal. Boro substitute Ryan Blott was the matchwinner.  The Boro team was Wilberforce, Lyth (Beadle 88), Cook, Cartwright, Hotte, Ingram, Dalton (Blott 70), Vermiglio, Hackworth, Thompson, Thornton.

MORECAMBE met Boro fourteen times in the Conference, 22 times in the Northern Premier League, once in the FA Cup, four matches in the FA Trophy and we also competed against each other in the Conference League Cup of 2004-05.  The final standings show Boro on top with 20 wins, Morecambe 10 wins, and 12 games undecided. 
 
The Northern Premier League was first founded in 1968, with Boro and Morecambe both amongst the elite Northern clubs selected for this new venture.  Indeed, the Shrimps finished that first season in third place behind Macclesfield Town and Wigan Athletic, with Boro only just avoiding relegation.  In the following ten seasons, however, Boro never once finished outside the top five and were selected to be a founder-member of the Conference, whereas Morecambe were generally mid-table or lower, and did not initially attain Conference status.
 
Our first ever meeting was on 23rd November 1968, when we travelled to Christie Park on the back of a terrible run of six consecutive defeats.  Fortunately the sequence was broken as Alan Wilcockson scored the goal which gained Boro a 1-1 draw in front of a crowd of 1,510.  The return game two months later was also drawn, but this time goal-less. 
 
In 1969-70 we did the double over Morecambe.  At home, a single goal from speedy winger Graham Potter secured the points, whilst at Christie Park we won 3-1 thanks to Kenny Ellis, Tony Lee, and a rare goal from centre-half George Siddle.
 
Our one and only FA Cup meeting with Morecambe was in 1975-76, in the First Round here at the Athletic Ground.  Goals from Dick Hewitt and Shaun Marshall gave us a two-nil win in front of 2,183 spectators.
 
Boro's biggest-ever victory against the Shrimps was on Boxing Day 1970, with 2,159 spectators seeing a Kenny Ellis hat-trick as Boro romped home 5-0.  The other goal contributors were a penalty from Alan Franks - one of his record tally of 222 goals for the Boro  - and full-back John Rodgers. We also hit the five goal mark in October 1977, this time in a 5-3 win on the Lancashire coast.  Hitting the net for Boro that day were Dave Smith (2), Steve Deere, Harry A Dunn and Alan Sibborn.
 
Our two teams provided another eight-goal thriller down Lancaster Road as recently as December 2000, with hat-tricks from Mark Quayle of Morecambe and Steve Brodie of Scarborough.  Gary Thompson scored the other goal for the Lancastrians and Cherif Diallo the remaining Boro goal as the game ended four goals apiece.
 
In recent years, Boro did not have things their own way when faced with Morecambe.  In 2001-02 the Shrimps did the double for the first time, 2-0 home and away, with John Norman scoring in both games.  Not only did Morecambe knock Boro out of the FA Trophy that season at the Fifth Round stage, they simultaneously achieved their best-ever result against Boro by winning the replay 3-0 after a 1-1 draw at Seamer Road.  Previously we had met twice in the Trophy and overcome Morecambe1-0 each time, thanks to a Dave Smith goal at Christie Park in 1978-79 and a Stewart Mell strike here in 1986-87. 
 
In 2003-04 both games were home wins, 1-0 to Boro (Michael Price's only goal for the Seadogs) and 2-1 at Morecambe (Mark Quayle for Boro, Danny Carlton and, in the last minute, Jamie Murphy for the Shrimps).  The following season we drew 1-1 here with Chris Senior and Keiran Walmsley on the scoresheet, whilst at Christie Park Danny Carlton and Michael Twiss did the damage after Neil Redfearn's penalty had put Boro ahead.  In 2005-06 Morecambe were the first visitors to the McCain and went away with a 1-0 win, but on 24th January 2006 came a superb Boro performance at Christie Park which earned a 3-0 win thanks to goals from Lee Fowler, Chris Hughes and David McNiven.

MOSSLEY were regular opponents of Boro in the Northern Premier League between 1972 and 1979, and there were also some great FA Trophy tussles.  Our first meeting was on 31st January 1970 with Boro earning a 2-2 draw at Seel Park, but the Cheshire League high-flyers snatched a dramatic late 3-2 win at the Athletic Ground and went as far as the Quarter Final before losing to Barnet.  History repeated itself in 1980-81, with Boro drawing 2-2 with the FA Trophy holders at Mossley before losing 1-0 to the Lilywhites in the replay.

Boro had had much more success in Northern Premier League meetings, the last of which was a 2-1 home win in April 1979 with Derek Abbey and Harry A Dunn on target.