Normal service resumes for Hull City and Middlesbrough at Wembley - as some things never change
THE record books show that Middlesbrough are the only side Pep Guardiola did not manage to beat in the Premier League.
On an oppressive day at Wembley at the start of an unseasonably hot spring bank holiday weekend, they achieved notoriety for something else - which was totally unwanted. Becoming the first side to lose to two different clubs in the play-offs in the same season. Typical Boro.
For Boro and Hull City, there were several doffs of their caps to their history at the home of football and, indeed, to their 2025-26 stories.
Groundhog Day for the Teessiders saw them fail to win at Wembley for a sixth successive game. They have never scored in normal time; their solitary goal arrived in the extra half-hour of their League Cup final against Leicester City in April 1997.
That saw Fabrizio Ravanelli race away and perform his famous goal celebration - involving him pulling his jersey entirely over his head—before Emile Heskey went on to spoil it all with a 118th-minute equaliser.
On Saturday, it was about Oli McBurnie getting in Boro's head in the 95th minute.
Twelve months earlier, almost to the exact day, Sheffield United’s hearts were broken in the Championship play-off showpiece in the fifth minute of stoppage time when Sunderland’s Tommy Watson cashed in on an error from Kieffer Moore to score.
This time around, the fall guy was Sol Brynn.
Another local lad who came through the ranks at Boro to keep goal for the Teessiders had a tough Wembley moment when Ben Roberts fluffed a shot from Chelsea’s Roberto Di Matteo, just 42 seconds into the 1997 FA Cup final.
Brynn’s episode, given the timing, was far more brutal after his ghastly mistake—flapping horribly at a cross from Tigers substitute Yu Hirakawa - was seized upon with relish by McBurnie.
He was never, ever going to go away quietly in his celebrations in front of the destroyed Boro contingent, who provided a sea of sullen red at the West end, just as did in their previous appearance here in the play-off showpiece against Norwich in 2015.
Another defeat, another nil….Not again was the silent lament from Teesside. Forget the talk of a free hit after the events of Southampton Spygate, this was another crushing blow.
For Brynn, there was utter devastation as he sat prostrate on the turf, shattered and alone.
He was comforted by Boro’s best player on the day in Aidan Morris, the first one to make a beeline for him after the final whistle.
First-team coach Adi Viveash was the next to try. It was a time when consoling words won’t have registered.
Hull’s most celebrated goal ever arrived at the west side of the stadium. Dean Windass (2008), take a bow.
McBurnie’s effort was by no means as spectacular - and did not get anywhere near to Mo Diame’s sweet winning strike in front of the opposite goal a decade ago either.
Yet ugly was beautiful as City registered a 1-0 win for the third successive time in a Championship play-off final at Wembley. Not time for losers because we are the champions…
And what a story again from Hull’s ‘mentality monsters’, a band of brothers who can win in different ways and always have each other’s backs. Tales like this are good for the soul.
Their own He-Man at the back in Charlie Hughes was the personification of that, he got a slap or two on the back from his team-mates after some saving clearances at the second-half.
When he didn’t get acclaim, John Egan did or Semi Ajayi. It was not always seen, but it was there. A brief rub of the head, a pat of acknowledgement and then back to work. It’s what all good defensive units do; a unit who did not concede over the three-game play-off series.
All three were strong and unstinting and not to be moved as was the sole Hullensian in the starting line-up in captain Lewie Coyle, who had his special moment looking up to the heavens ahead of the trophy celebrations to remember his late father Chris. This is for you, dad.
Boro did not so much as muster an effort on target against Hull’s likely lads. That said, they had been here before. Many times over this spring in fact..
And as for Wembley? Well, it was another sickening rewind.
Newcastle United and Sunderland may have got rid of the north-east curse here, but Boro – much like Leeds United down the A1 – most definitely haven’t. Their fans partied wildly at Trafalgar Square on Friday night; there was no party on Saturday.
Heading into the play-offs, Boro’s motto was ‘We Shall Be’, translating from the Latin word Erimus, which features on the town’s coat of arms and embodies defiance and resilience.
For Hull, as it quite often is, it shall be McBurnie.