Tees

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  1. Tees Valley Mayor Lord Ben Houchen talking with gesticulating hands. He is looking to the left and is wearing a dark suit and tie. He has got short dark hair.

  2. Pick of the stats: Middlesbrough v Oxford United

    Side-by-side of Middlesbrough and Oxford United club badges

    Oxford United will look to continue their bounce back against play off chasing Middlesbrough at Riverside on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

    The U's ended a poor run on nine winless games (W5 D4) with a victory over Watford prior to the international break and will be looking to disrupt yet another top six chaser in Boro.

    Though the Teesside club will feel victory is a must, having already dropped three points off the pace of the promotion hunting pack and could risk falling further away with the three teams above (Bristol City, West Bromwich Albion, Coventry City) all finding themselves in fine form.

    • Middlesbrough are unbeaten across their last nine league games against Oxford United (W7 D2), since a 3-1 defeat in February 1990.

    • Oxford United have lost 10 of their 13 away league games against Middlesbrough (W2 D1), scoring just eight goals in total across that time.

    • After winning each of their last two home league games, Middlesbrough will be looking to win three in succession at the Riverside Stadium for the first time since October 2023.

    • Oxford have won just one of their last 10 league games (D4 L5), though that sole victory did come in their last fixture, a 1-0 home win against Watford.

    • No player has provided more assists in the Championship this season than Middlesbrough Finn Azaz (11), whilst in the reverse fixture against Oxford, he recorded four goal contributions in total (2 goals, 2 assists) – his most in a league match during his career so far.

    An image detailing how to follow your Championship team on BBC Sport: "On the app? Tap the bell icon to get news about your club sent to you. Signed in on a browser? Hit 'Follow' to stay up to date.

  3. Liam Matthews' police mugshot, he is white, thin and clean-shaven with short dark hair. he is looking at the camera with no expression and is wearing a grey-coloured crew-neck top

  4. A CGI of the electric arc furnace which had been planned to be built in Lackenby. It is a white building with greenish blue vertical stripes.

  5. A parking permit sign which reads: 'Mon-Fri 8am-6pm Permit holders (U) or 45 mins. No return within 2 hours.'

  6. Artist's impression of newbuild homes. The two-storey brick properties, some with cars parked outside line a curving road. A woman can be seen walking on the pavement and there is a group of children on a grassed area. Small trees are in autumn leaf.

  7. Rav van den Berg in action for Middlesbrough

  8. Maurice, wearing a brown jumper, and Nancy, wearing a red top, are sitting on a settee in their living room. Both are laughing.

  9. Split image showing Coventry's Frank Lampard, West Brom boss Tony Mowbray, Bristol City head coach Liam Manning and Michael Carrick of Middlesbrough

  10. WC White Chemist. It is a green building with yellow text on the front

  11. A stock image of a red bike on a cycle lane.

  12. A newly installed public defibrillator on a post in front of a leafless tree and shrubs. Standing to the right is a man wearing an orange hi-vis jacket, and to the left a woman with shoulder-length blonde hair, wearing spectacles and a mauve jacket over a black dress. Next to her is a man with grey hair, wearing spectacles and a light blue polo shirt.

  13. Durham Police HQ, a white concrete building with tall, floor-to-ceiling windows on both of its two stories. A blue Durham Police sign sits in front above some plants and a union jack is flying from a flagpole.

  14. A sign with 'Fredrick Nattrass Primary Academy' on a green fence surrounding the school. Gates to the side of the sign have been closed.

  15. Niamh Barclay, project Lead for the Creative and Cultural Skills Hub, standing with some of the mentors. The 10 people are standing on the stone steps of one of the buildings in Beamish Museum. The building behind them is made of light bricks and there are columns on either side of the doorway. The mentors are wearing bright clothes and smiling.

  16. 'Boro taking long way round in hunt for play-offs'

    Mark Drury
    BBC Radio Tees commentator

    Expert view with Middlesbrough's badge on it
    Michael Carrick and his Middlesbrough players clap the fans after beating Derby on 1 March Rex Features

    Middlesbrough have lost the most league games of any of the Championship's top eight

    Eight games to secure the play-off place that was viewed as the bare minimum, both inside and outside the club last August.

    Middlesbrough's season has been baffling to fans and media alike.

    Michael Carrick's side sit just three points outside the play-off positions yet have managed to lose 14 games already (the most in the top eight) and recently emerged from a five-game losing streak.

    They boast the third-most potent attack in the division and week after week we hear opposing managers talking about Boro's squad being one of the best in the division.

    Yet many fans have long since given up on the play-offs and rail against any talk of reaching them as the stuff of fantasy.

    Faith in Carrick was severely tested during a run of seven defeats in eight in all competitions between January and mid-February but recent times have seen Boro win three from five to keep the top six in sight.

    The fact they did so in the midst of a defensive crisis has served as grist to the mill for both supporters and critics of the Boro boss alike.

    When Dael Fry limped off in the closing stages of Boro's 1-0 defeat at Swansea City, it left Middlesbrough in the position of not having a single fit senior centre-back at the club.

    With Rav van den Berg out with a troublesome knee injury and George Edmundson also sidelined with an ankle problem it meant full-back Neto Borges and midfielder Jonny Howson had to fill in.

    Another makeshift centre-back, Luke Ayling, has also been sidelined with an ankle injury which might keep him out for the rest of the season.

    It's a run of bad luck to be sure, but was it foreseeable? Well yes, because when Matt Clarke was allowed to join Derby County in January without being replaced the Boro boss was asked if he was concerned about a lack of depth in that position?

    His answer was he didn't need another centre-back as three was probably going to be enough and Howson and Ayling could fill in if required.

    So much of Boro's play-off prospects now rest on the shoulders of Howson and Borges. The pair put in sterling performances against Queens Park Rangers and Luton Town before the international break but Howson is just back from injury too and the 36-year-old played both games without participating in a single training session.

    With games at Blackburn Rovers and at home to Leeds United on the horizon the need for one or more of Fry, van den Berg or Edmundson to return is pressing.

    Jonny Howson in a defensive position during the match at LutonRex Features

    Jonny Howson has played as a makeshift centre-half alongside left-back Neto Borges

    At the top end of the pitch the loss of Liverpool loanee Ben Doak to injury has impacted Boro's attacking play. As has the departure of Emmanuel Latte Lath, sold to Atlanta United in January for a club record fee.

    His replacement, Kelechi Iheanacho has yet to convince and hasn't scored since arriving at The Riverside. Boro need him to find his feet quickly to support Tommy Conway.

    Despite the many issues they face, Boro are well capable of having a good shot at the play-offs. They still have talented attacking players like Finn Azaz, Delano Burgzorg and Conway while Hayden Hackney has delivered five goals from midfield.

    Boro's final match is away to Coventry City. For that game to matter they have to string a winning run together, starting at home to Oxford United this Saturday.

    If Carrick's side do make it into the play-offs they'll definitely have gone the long way round.

  17. A general view of Station Road in Redcar showing houses

  18. Thornaby Road in Stockton. There is a traffic island in the middle of the road with bollards on the pavements on either side. Rows of houses line the street.

  19. Hackney scores first goal for England U21s

    Hayden Hackney putting England ahead 1-0 against Portugal on MondayGetty Images

    Middlesbrough midfielder Hayden Hackney has scored his first international goal during England's Under-21's 4-2 win against Portugal at The Hawthorns on Monday.

    Sheffield Wednesday's James Beadle had made multiple saves to prevent Portugal taking the lead before Hackney was gifted possession to fire in the opener.

    The 22-year-old has made nine appearances for the under-21s, making his debut in 2023 under current boss Lee Carsley.

    Sunderland midfielder Jobe Bellingham and Burnley defender CJ Egan-Riley provided assists in the victory, with the Black Cats teenager setting up Arsenal's Ethan Nwaneri to score on his full debut appearance.

  20. National League Branding

  21. Playing fields with trees in the background. A football match is taking place on the pitch between a team in light blue tops and another in black and yellow stripes. A few people can be seen watching from the touchline.

  22. An aerial view of Eaglescliffe station showing the newly installed footbridge - a long black steel structure, to the left, with construction work taking place underneath it and also to the station's island platform.

  23. Four people are either side of the large colourful artwork hanging from a wall.

  24. An aerial view of the land where plans have been put forward to build a garage. The land is roughly L-shaped and is bordered by woodland to it's north and west. A petrol station stands next to it on the east side. Across the road is an industrial site.