Steve Gibson has overseen a massive turnaround in fortunes at Middlesbrough since taking control ten years ago. Tonight he sees his beloved club embark on their first UEFA Cup trail and Sports Writer Paul Fraser found out what the occasion means to the cub's worshipped chairman.

THE year was 1994. Steve Gibson succeeded Colin Henderson as chairman at Middlesbrough, dreaming of the day he would be in charge of his beloved club as they embarked on their first meaningful European adventure.

Just over ten years on and his wish is about to be granted. He has had a taste of cup ties against other sides from the continent, albeit on a somewhat more low-key voyage.

In the season he took control, just 1,633 supporters turned out to see Serie B outfit Brescia win 1-0 at Ayresome Park in an Anglo-Italian Cup match.

The following year, Gibson's first full campaign as chairman and Bryan Robson's first as manager, there was more of the same. A trip to Udinese and just 300 turned out to witness Boro record a boring 0-0 draw.

Other less attractive fixtures - against Grimsby, Barnsley, Piza and Ancona to name just four - are the only experiences the Teessiders have of competing on the European stage. But tonight will be just the start, hopefully, of something completely different.

Fittingly, in the year Gibson celebrated a decade's chairmanship at Middlesbrough, the club finally landed a trophy after 128 years of hurt.

Mission achieved by Gibson via the Carling Cup in February.

And it is that victory, over Bolton in Cardiff, that has booked Middlesbrough's place in the UEFA Cup - previously won by clubs of the stature of Real Madrid, Ajax, Bayern Munich and Liverpool.

It is a sign of a remarkable achievement by Gibson, who has ploughed millions, quite literally, into transforming unfashionable Middlesbrough from Football League mediocrity into European hopefuls and a club star names are more than willing to call home.

One of the richest men in the country, having made his fortune in haulage, he is now ready to savour the moment and experience what life is like in charge of a UEFA Cup contender.

Gibson deserves it, perhaps more than any other chairman. He was instrumental, as the club's youngest ever director at 26, in saving the club from liquidation during the Willie Maddren reign in 1986.

And he was there in Udinese, 1994, when just a few hundred witnessed another one of those unsurprisingly unsuccessful Anglo-Italian match-ups.

But times have changed on Teesside.

Over 30,000 Boro fans should be at the Riverside to mark the venue's first major European contest with Czech champions Banik Ostrava this evening. While 900 tickets are simply not enough to meet the demand for those wanting to make the trip to Ostrava for the second leg in a fortnight's time - when nearly 20,000 will be inside the eastern European ground.

One of those will be Gibson. "We have been in Europe before and I think I was one of the very few who can actually remember some of the games we had in Italy - this is very different of course," said Gibson, one of the few chairman in football today who actually have their name chanted from the stands.

"It has been a long time in coming but we finally made it with the cup victory at Cardiff and we've got real momentum at this club because of the League Cup and now that we're in the UEFA Cup.

"I know I am really looking forward to European football and I am certain every one associated with the club is - the players, the fans and the staff. It should be quite an occasion for Middlesbrough."

Defeat over the two legs to Banik - a possibility, after all they won their league by five points and only a defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in the qualifiers cost them a place in the Champions League -- would be costly.

Progress beyond the first round is paramount as it ensures McClaren's team will definitely play four further fixtures, as the second stage is played in a group phase for the first time.

And, considering the financial backing given to McClaren, it is little wonder Gibson is calling for a few more top European nights to attend over the next few months.

International stars Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Michael Reiziger, Bolo Zenden and Mark Viduka have arrived on big salaries, while Ray Parlour has a record of achievement which will stand up to anyone's.

But even in the three years building up to this summer, McClaren was given the money to spend; with the likes of Gareth Southgate, £6.5m from Aston Villa, and Massimo Maccarone, £8.15m from Empoli, arriving in the North-East.

"We just need to get into the group stage and then we'll be fine and we can look forward to the rest of the competition," says Gibson.

"It won't be easy but we have brought in players with proven European experience who are looking for success. That's what we need here now, we need to sustain and build on what has already been achieved."

And there will be very few, if any, doubting that Gibson can honour his word.

Read more about Middlesbrough here.