Saints travelled up to Middlesbrough on this day in 2012 knowing that a win would see them promoted to the Premier League, but anything else would give West Ham a chance of a shock late surge.

The game was scheduled for a 5.30 kick off in Middlesbrough, that meant plenty of time to get up there, but for those who were coming home on the day they would be lucky to get back before midnight.

Despite being on TV a big Saints following went up to the North East and many of them went in fancy dress expecting one big promotion party and to celebrate our return to the top flight after 7 years.

We opted to stay in Darlington a short train journey from Boro and unlike my last visit in 1982 recounted a few days ago this time we could afford to stay in a hotel.

So having checked in we went on a train, I say train but it was a converted bus on a trains wheels, found a pub in the town centre and enjoyed a few beers.

Going to the ground it was a good atmosphere, Boro fans were in good spirits and their team had an outside chance of the play offs themselves if they could win, the Saints support was colourful and loud.

It started well for Saints with Billy Sharp scoring in the first minute and that's the way it remained for most of the first half, but on the stroke of half time disaster struck, a hopeful Middlesbrough ball should have been dealt with by Jos Hooiveld, but his header was week and it gave Bailey a chance to hit a shot that deflected off Richard Chaplow for the equaliser, we had lost concentration for a minute and paid the price.

Boro had the impetus in the second half, they sensed a chance for a play off place, but a refereeing decision played a part on 55 minutes, Adam Lallana on the edge of the box prepared to shoot when he was clipped by Seb Hines, the Boro man was already on a yellow card, if he hadn't have been they he surely would have been shown one now, but as is often the case in these situations the referee doesn't show another yellow and then a red.

On 77 minutes there was a goal, Zemmama curled a free kick into the top corner and the promotion party was all but doused at least for a week.

We headed back to Darlington and spent a couple of hours in the pub opposite the Hotel severely deflated, at 11pm we decided to head out into the bright lights of Darlington, it was just as dead as 1982, there was literally no where open for a drink after 11pm, we tried to go for a Curry but the few curry houses that were there all seemed to shut at the same time as the pubs.

The one thing we had to our advantage though was buying power, with about a dozen of us up there we pointed out to the owner of one of these restaurants that should he open a little later then it would be financially beneficial, given the food and drink we would consume.

He saw the £££ signs and we ended the evening the only customers in a Darlington curry house.

The table now saw Reading as Champions with Saints on 85 points, West Ham on 80 points but with a game in hand, that being at Leicester City on the Monday evening.

The Hammers beat the Foxes and it was now all down to the last day, we had to beat Coventry at St Mary's and we were guaranteed to be up, a draw would see us promoted unless West Ham won by more than 3 goals.

Photo: Action Images

PatfromPoole added 11:12 - Apr 21 I drove to this game. Paid 50p to park for the day in the town centre. Kind of summed Middlesbrough up for me. Though the car was at least still there when I went back after the game.
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