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Staff steal anniversary match

Middlesbrough Football Club鈥檚 Riverside Stadium was the venue for a special match to celebrate 海角直播鈥檚 80th anniversary.

The 90-minute Play on the Park football match saw a team of 海角直播 staff take on a team of graduates. The 32 players were selected in a random draw after a call went out for potential team members.

The first player to hit the back of the net was Josh Bonathan from the staff team, who scored the first goal 22 minutes into the game.

Josh, a school assistant in the School of Health & Social Care, said: 'I鈥檝e been a Boro season ticket holder for eight years, since the age of 11, so I was really pleased to play at the Riverside. It felt great to score the first goal and I鈥檓 going to display the shirt I wore up on my wall at home.'

Fellow staff team member Gerry Burton, a technician in the School of Science & Engineering, said: 'I鈥檝e been a Middlesbrough supporter since 1968 when Stan Anderson was the manager. It鈥檚 been a fantastic experience playing this match. It鈥檚 something I鈥檇 always dreamed of doing.'

The final score was 4-3 to the staff team. Ian Vaughan, goalkeeper from the staff team, was named Man of the Match.

Ian, who works in Campus Facilities, is a lifelong Boro fan. He said: 'I started going to games in 1970 and I鈥檝e always dreamed of being able to put on a Boro shirt. I鈥檝e taken part in the half-time penalty competition at the old Ayresome Park ground before, but it鈥檚 been really special to be able to play in this match.'

The staff team, who wore the red Boro home kit, was managed by Richard Bowden, who works in the University鈥檚 sports and recreation unit. The graduate team, wearing the light blue Boro away kit, was managed by Tony Clapham, student activities officer in the Student鈥檚 Union.

Among graduate team players was David O鈥機onnell, originally from Great Broughton, who graduated with a BA (Hons) Marketing in 2002. He went on to set up a recruitment company with his brother Edward. He said: 'It鈥檚 not every day that you get the opportunity to have a kick-about at the Riverside Stadium. It鈥檚 been awesome playing on this pitch.'

Abingdon Primary School pupils Aleeza Mansha and Faizan Hussain were the team mascots. Abingdon is a participating school in the University鈥檚 Meteor programme, which aims to inspire pupils to think about further and higher education.

Each player received a personalised official Middlesbrough FC strip, a certificate and DVD of match highlights. The University鈥檚 Vice-Chancellor Professor Graham Henderson presented medals and a trophy to the winning team.

The match was organised by the University鈥檚 alumni relations team. Proceeds from the event will go to the University鈥檚 80th Anniversary annual fund.

Raffle winners The raffle winners from the Play on the Park raffle were: 1st prize (signed Middlesbrough FC pennant) William Robertson, ticket no. 0347 2nd prize (tour of Riverside Stadium) Dawn Kennedy, ticket no. 0362 3rd prize (signed Middlesbrough FC ball), Janet Smith, ticket no. 1168 4th prize (signed Middlesbrough FC home shirt), Zen Lenton, ticket no. 1073 Bonus prize (海角直播 neck tie), Katrina Savage, ticket no. 1074 Bonus prize (海角直播 tie), Janet Smith, ticket no. 1170

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