Argentinian Carlos Marinelli experienced the highs and lows of football as Middlesbrough bowed out of the North Riding Senior Cup last night, beaten in a penalty shoot out by Conference League Scarborough at the McCain Stadium.
It took Middlesbrough's side, a mixture of youth and experience, just five minutes to take the lead.
Robbie Stockdale was bundled over on the edge of the penalty area, 19-year-old Marinelli rifling home the resultant free kick.
A 25-yard effort from the same player ten minutes later had the Scarborough keeper Andy Woods at full stretch, but it was the home side who levelled with just 17 minutes played.
Gareth Williams made progress along Boro's left side, goalkeeper Marlon Beresford came to narrow the angle but the cross from Williams beat him and Jason Gavin headed into his own net when attempting to clear.
Beresford was seen to better effect minutes later when going down well at his near post to deny Stewart Morris.
Dean Gordon, who had a lively game, rattled the Scarborough crossbar with a fierce drive from 30 yards, but the game slowly ebbed away into an ordinary affair as both managers took the opportunity to use their full allotment of subs.
The flow of the game as a consquence was disrupted and neither keeper was severely tested throughout a bitty second 45-minutes.
Scarborough almost snatched victory 12 minutes from time when Stockdale had to be alert to clear off the line, but the inevitability of a penalty shoot-out was always in the minds of a small crowd.
It was Scarborough who progressed after converting all five, Marinelli blotting his copybook by missing for Middlesbrough, and it is the East Coast side who will play York City in the final.
Scarborough: Woods, Russell, Betts, Ingram, Ellender, Jones, Williams, Stoker, Tate, (Faure 62), Morris, (Jaric 46), Brodie, (Gildea 62). Subs (not used): McNaughton, Newton, Brunton.
Middlesbrough: Beresford, Stockdale, Harrison, (McStea 62), Gavin, Hanson, (Hudson 62), Gordon, Stamp, Kell, Armstrong, Moore, (T Jones 80), Marinelli. Subs (not used): B Jones, Parnaby.
l Gillingham chairman Paul Scally has been fined £10,000 plus costs by the Football Association for breaching betting rules.
The Gills supremo had three separate bets on his then Division Two side in regards to the 1998-99 season, which ended with a defeat on penalties to Manchester City in the play-off final at Wembley.
Scally, who chose not to appear before yesterday's three-man commission to answer the misconduct charge, revealed the three bets he placed, believed to be running into five figures, in February while giving a lecture to Medway Council.
Two of the three bets Scally placed were on that particular defeat at Wembley, having wagered that Gillingham would reach the play-off final and beat Manchester City 2-1 before the season had begun.
He had also placed money on Gillingham securing promotion that year.
FA spokesman Steve Double said evidence had been heard relating to what Scally had said about the bets and the fact that the chairman had featured in a book on betting in football substantiated that he had been betting.
''Double said: ''We strongly believe that people in football betting on a game in which they are directly involved in sends out the wrong message.
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