:: Match Report - Boro 0 Lfc 0 :: Nil in the net, not a single shot on target - nor anywhere near if the truth be told - but much endeavour to entertain. And, in the end, it boiled down to a tale of two tackles that saved goals that might have been penalties; one by Djimi Traoré that was as clean as a whistle and another by Franck Queudrue which was as murky as the water in the nearby River Tees. The Riverside crowd had to wait until the half-hour mark for the first meaningful goalmouth action when Juninho put through Gaizka Mendieta but before he could shoot at Chris Kirkland in goal, Djimi Traore put in a timely tackle. Owen, returning to the side after an ankle injury, had a half-chance on the stroke of half-time but his first touvh let him down. Owen then turned provider early in the second half when his pass found Harry Kewell who in turn found Emile Heskey but the England man's shot was kept out by Mark Schwarzer in goal. Senegal striker El Hadji Diouf then came close to breaking the deadlock when his header from a Kewell cross crashed off the crossbar before being denied later in the proceedings by a challenge from Colin Cooper. Owen, still short of match fitness, was replaced by exciting teenager Sinama-Pongolle whose first contribution was to fire over from close range. By now it was one-way traffic. Diouf fired over after a neat lay-off by Heskey and Kewell's 20-yard drive was blocked by Queudrue. Gerrard stormed through Boro's backline and released Sinama-Pongolle but running away from goal the French starlet's effort was tame and easily claimed by Schwarzer. In a rare foray to the Liverpool end Zenden stabbed wide when picked out by Mendieta, but if that constituted a let-off for the visitors, it was dwarfed by the one Boro enjoyed. As the clock ticked away, Gerrard poked a pass from the edge of the area to send Sinama-Pongolle careering in on goal. Backtracking, Queudrue flung a boot from behind, got nothing on the ball and flattened Sinama-Pongolle as he prepared to shoot, only for referee Dowd to ignore Liverpool's penalty appeals. Houllier believes it was a penalty and was disappointed not to be given the decision, in a similar incident to what occurred towards the end of the Manchester United defeat. "I think it was a cast iron penalty," said Houllier. "When you see the replay you see he hit the player's leg and didn't touch the ball at all. So we think it should have been a penalty."

source: The Independent/world soccer news/icTeesside