Swansea City 0 Middlesbrough 3

BORO recorded their first league win on their travels since November and their biggest away victory for four years in South Wales this afternoon, writes GORDON COX from the Liberty Stadium.

Not since a 3-0 win at Birmingham in August 2005 have Boro won so emphatically on opposition soil.

Leroy Lita started a Boro game for the first time, one of two changes from the side which drew with Sheffield United as he replaced Jeremie Aliadiere, who has a hamstring injury.

Gary O'Neil was the other change as he replaced Didier Digard, who is out for two to three weeks with a groin problem. Tuncay started the game on the bench.

The Swansea side showed two changes from that which lost at Leicester last Saturday with Joe Allen injured and Gorka Pintado also missing out, although he was on the bench. In came Andrea Orlandi and Stephen Dobbie.

The first opening was created by Swansea as Nathan Dyer combined with Dobbie on the left-hand edge of the Boro box before he overhit a cross.

Both sets of fans were in good voice with Boro fans loud with a rendition of, "You are my Boro" and Swansea replying with, "You're not famous anymore", Cwm Rhondda and the old Max Boyce number, Hymns and Arias.

As the verbal jousting continued Boro settled to win corners in quick succession and Mark Yeates saw a 22-yard shot deflected just over.

Boro almost took the lead with just over five minutes played as David Wheater rose to meet a right-wing corner and head against the crossbar.

When Tony McMahon came out second best in a challenge for possession with Alan Tate midway inside his own half, Boro were under pressure and forced to backtrack.

Yeates did well but left-back Tate still managed to feed Dobbie, who brought a comfortable save from Danny Coyne with a low drive from the edge of the penalty area with 16 minutes played.

Boro again owed a debt of thanks to Yeates as he chased back to dispossess Orlandi, who took too long on the edge of the box when in with a clear opportunity.

But openings were few and far between up to this point and we had to wait until the 25th minute before Coyne was forced into another save, falling away to his left to smother a deflected 25-yard drive from Dobbie.

Three minutes and a half chance headed over the bar from Lita later, Yeates took possession on the edge of the Swansea penalty area and drilled a rising drive just over the bar.

Little had been seen of Adam Johnson and Marvin Emnes in the opening half hour, but with 32 minutes played they combined to open up the home defence and create Boro's first goal of the season.

Emnes, just up from the right-hand edge of the penalty area, fed Johnson out wide on the left. He cut in a delivered a low hard cross which seemed to be deflected Swansea captain off Gary Monk and into the bottom corner of the net.

Minutes later it was almost two as Yeates flashed in a cross and Rhys Williams was inches away from connecting with a diving header.

It was Swansea though who put in a strong finish to the half as Dobbie again caused problems and Wheater needed to produce an excellent block just inside the Boro penalty area.

But Boro could be pretty satisfied with an opening 45 minutes, with Yeates and O'Neil the visitors' most effective players.

Half-time: Swansea City 0 Middlesbrough 1

Boro conceded a corner with just over 30 seconds of the second half played as Robert Huth turned a dangerous looking Dobbie through ball behind.

That corner led to a quick second, which Ashley Williams headed over.

Tidy approach work from the home side had Boro stretched again minutes later as Angel Rangel on the goal line picked out Dobbie inside the penalty area with a low pass, which was turned across goal and just wide.

Mark Gower was next to threaten as the Swans started the second-half brightly but soon Boro increased their lead.

With 52 minutes played Ashley Williams gave the ball away, Marvin Emnes pounced and cracked an unstoppable drive from the edge of the penalty area, just to the left of the D, into the top right-hand corner of Dorus de Vries's net.

To Gareth Southgate's frustration Boro were sitting too deep and that invited pressure. But it was from a free-kick that the Swans caused a problem just short of the hour mark as Coyne had to backpedal to tip over an Orlandi free-kick delivered from out wide near the right-hand touchline.

With just over and hour played Paolo Sousa made a double change as he threw on two youngsters making their Championship debuts, Ashley Richards and Casey Thomas.

It was a player at the other end of the experience scale who stopped Boro's progress minutes later as Leon Britton, making his 300th Swansea appearance, just got the better of Yeates.

With 22 minutes remaining Southgate made his first change as Tuncay, wearing a Boro shirt for the first time since the final game of last season, took the field to rich applause from the Boro fans.

A few minutes after his introduction the Turkey skipper twisted his way out of trouble, back into it and out of it again before firing over a cross that caught De Vries by surprise and he hurriedly turned it round for a corner.

By now Boro were firmly in command, dictating the pace and looking to pick off another goal.

That came nine minutes from time as Johnson, much more effective in the second half, swung over a right-wing corner and Tuncay powered in a header from seven yards in front of goal.

As the home fans poured for the exits quicker than if there had been a fire alarm, Tuncay instinctively backheeled a pass to McMahon deep in the Swansea half but the full-back's cross was quickly cleared.

Back came Boro, totally dominant, and Johnson brought a save from De Vries with a curling shot from inside the area and in the final minute the same player shaved the top of the net with a splendidly-struck volley from 22 yards.

Boro escaped a blemish on their record entering the final minute of normal time as Dyer shot from inside the penalty area, Coyne saved, Pintado followed up with a low shot from eight yards and Grounds cleared off the line.

*Boro's Totesport.com Reserve League opener against Newcastle United scheduled for Wednesday August 26 has been rearranged for Tuesday October 6 at the Riverside. This is due to United's commitments in the Carling Cup on the night of the original date.

Swansea City: De Vries; Rangel, Williams, Monk (Capt), Tate, Orlandi (Pintado 76), Britton, MacDonald (Richards 63), Gower (Thomas 63), Dyer, Dobbie. Unused subs: Cornell (gk); Painter, Bond, Bessone.

Middlesbrough: Coyne; McMahon, Wheater, Huth (Capt), Grounds, Yeates (Arca 80), Williams, O'Neil, A Johnson, Lita (Franks 79), Emnes (Tuncay 67). Unused subs: Steele (gk); Hoyte, Taylor, Hines.

Referee: Paul Taylor

Bookings

Swansea City: Orlandi, 51, foul.

Middlesbrough: Williams, 31, foul; O'Neil, 38, foul; McMahon, 69, foul; Huth, 90+3, foul.

Attendance: 16,201 (630 from Middlesbrough)

Conditions: Overcast grey sky, quite humid with occasional sunshine and occasional drizzle.

Website Boro Man of the Match: Gary O'Neil