THE Riverside Stadium was again a lonely venue last night, but whatever the size of the crowd, Robbie Savage can be relied upon to play to it. The Wales midfield player is not unfamiliar with the dramatic arts and while his latest brush with pantomime may have summoned disgust from a disappointing audience, it propelled his side to a late victory.

This unremarkable Carling Cup fixture was heading inexorably for extra time when, in the 90th minute, Paul Dickov shot Blackburn Rovers to their fourth semi-final in five years. The result, and a tie against Manchester United, was deserved because Middlesbrough were awful, yet it had been Savage who had injected his side with impetus.

Clutching his face shortly before half-time, Savage claimed to have been spat upon by Emanuel Pogatetz, the defender. Television evidence was inconclusive and the Austria full back appeared bemused by Savage’s reaction, but anger was instilled into the Blackburn ranks and, from that flicker of controversy onwards, they were comprehensively the better side.

Mark Hughes did not seek headlines over an incident that had been initiated by Savage’s hack on Doriva. It earned him his eighth booking of the campaign and led to Pogatetz confronting the player. “The lad said something and maybe something came out of his mouth, but to say he spat is a bit much,” the Blackburn manager said. “We won’t be making anything out of it.”

There could be little disputing the effect on Savage, who was subsequently full of venom. “That was one of his very best games for the club,” Hughes said. “He showed energy and willingness to get the job done. In terms of impact, he hasn’t had as much for us as he has done at his previous clubs, but that showed the level he needs to be at.”

Given the half-hearted backing of their supporters, sympathy for Middlesbrough was limited. It was after Dickov had pilfered his sixth goal of the season that they edged towards aggression, but a combination of post and goalkeeper repelled Massimo Maccarone and any equaliser would have been unjustified. The manager made no attempt.

“That’s the most disappointed I’ve been for a long, long time,” Steve McClaren said. “I’m very angry. We’ve limped out of the tournament. We just weren’t good enough. No one came out of it with any credit.”

That includes the stayaways; in five home cup games, Middlesbrough have mustered an average attendance of below 12,500.

MIDDLESBROUGH (4-4-2): M Schwarzer — M Bates (sub: S Parnaby, 46min), C Riggott, G Southgate, E Pogatetz — F Rochemback, G Boateng (sub: F Queudrue, 83), Doriva, A Johnson (sub: M Maccarone, 70) — J F Hasselbaink, Yakubu Ayegbeni. Substitutes not used: B Jones, U Ehiogu.

BLACKBURN ROVERS (4-4-2): B Friedel — L Neill, A Todd, R Nelsen, M Gray — D Bentley (sub: S Reid, 90), R Savage, Tugay Kerimoglu, M G Pedersen (sub: B Emerton, 68) — S Kuqi, P Dickov. Substitutes not used: P Enckelman, Z Khizanishvili, D Thompson. Booked: Savage, Tugay.

Referee: A Wiley.